The Fire of Love
by Midnight Memories
Summary: After a girl gets left behind, she's forced to train under Sasuke Uchiha. Many would kill for that prestige, but she focuses on becoming stronger rather than on him. Yet after a while, sparks ignite. Sparks that'll eventually burn into the fire of love.
1. Left Behind

Disclaimer   
The only character I own is Mitsumi Akita, the rest aren't mine. Sadly.

Note   
This story has some slight references to another story I wrote, _Behind a Wall of Sand_. But you don't have to read it to understand this story.  
Also, Sasuke might be OOC, but he shouldn't be really bad. If you guys notice that it's really horrible, or there's something he just **wouldn't** do, then pm me or post it in a review.  
Last thing, flames… Who likes them? No one. So please don't give me any. Constructive criticism, okay, but flames, no!

Rated  
T.

Pairings

Sasuke/OC, but with slight mentions of Gaara/OC and eventually some Kakashi/OC.

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**Chapter one: Left Behind **

It had been this way for years. Kenoyo, Tadashi, and her. But then, Tadashi sent Kenoyo on a mission, to bring a letter to a relative of his in Sand Village. Once there, she met the famous Gaara of the Desert, fell in love, and abandoned her village. She came back only to say her final goodbyes, but then left for good with a nasty speech to Tadashi.

Then he quit.

Sixteen year old Akita Mitsumi sunk to her knees under a big willow tree as her eyes filled with tears. She hadn't been supposed to hear the conversation between her Sensei and closest friend, but she had snuck in anyways. Their heated discussion about Gaara and Kenoyo's relationship had made her friend leave Konoha, and Tadashi leave his job as a Sensei.

Mitsumi's courage had failed her when Kenoyo had left the building, her face dark with anger. She had told herself she would give her a last goodbye and wish her well in her relationship. But she couldn't bring herself to do it. She had simply snuck out of the building and went back to her own apartment.

That had been yesterday. And just this morning, Tadashi had resigned. Mitsumi leaned back and closed her turquoise eyes, letting her mind drift to what had happened.

--- Flashback ---

_"I'm sorry, Mitsumi…" Tadashi murmured, sitting down at his desk as the sixteen year old peeked back at him. She had an almost nervous expression on her face, wondering what he meant exactly. Her Sensei had never, ever apologized to her, so it was natural for her to wonder what was going on. But she kept silent, waiting for him to continue and explain himself. _

Tadashi pushed his chestnut-colored hair back and looked at her emotionlessly before saying, "I'm leaving Leaf Village. I'm going back to Mist Village, where my mother lives. I'm sick of being a Sensei!"

---End Flashback--

Mitsumi's heart had sunk painfully when he had said these words, and it sunk even more as she repeated them in her head. Kenoyo was gone. Tadashi was gone. The only two people who had never given up on her and had always encouraged the weaker ninja, had left her behind.

The chocolate-haired girl stared off into the distance, wondering what she was to do now. She still had her apartment, which was funded by the Academy; one bedroom, a bathroom, and a kitchen that she had shared with Kenoyo for years. Her parents had never quite gotten over her sudden interest in becoming a well-known ninja, so going back home and letting them win wasn't an option.

A lone tear slipped down her cheek, but she brushed it away numbly as she thought of Kenoyo. The older girl had always been there for her, yet had always shone brighter than she ever could. Learning new jutsus was easy for her friend, but Mitsumi had been struggling for years with the simplest tasks. She was weak; Kenoyo was strong. And Tadashi had always been ultra proud of Kenoyo, while Mitsumi had to stay in the shadow of her friend.

But not that she minded. Most of the time, Kenoyo would've gotten injured in fights with other ninjas while Mitsumi had watched, but sometimes she had wished to learn jutsus that fast, and to be as strong as her older friend to get the attention of their Sensei.

YetMitsumi now felt a gripping amount of pain rushing through her veins, feeling immensely betrayed by her friend for leaving her behind. And for a boy, nonetheless. But her pain transformed slowly in a shameful jealousy, and she groaned and brought a hand to her forehead to try to calm herself down.

A few minutes later, she heard footsteps to her right, and she quickly brushed her cheeks and lifted red-rimmed eyes to look at the person in front of her. Hatake Kakashi was staring down at her, and the expression on the half of his face that wasn't covered revealed compassion.

Kakashi and Mitsumi had trained together before, when Tadashi had given up on teaching her something out of frustration. She had often learned the basics of the jutsus thanks to him, but he had never offered of becoming her Sensei even if Naruto and Sakura had left to train under Jiraiya and Tsunade.

"I'm sorry about Tadashi, Mitsumi…" he stated gently, sitting down beside the trembling girl. "I know he was like your father, and I really don't know why he left so abruptly. He didn't want to tell anyone what—"

"It's alright, Kakashi," she cut in, her voice strangely aloof. Her eyes were off in the distance, unable to focus on something. But then she snapped her attention to him as he said softly, "The Academy doesn't really know what to do, or where to place you. Every Sensei has their hands full with their groups, but we're going to find someone to train you soon. Promise."

Mistumi nodded, then looked away again. She wanted to be alone, but Kakashi obviously mistook that for a need to have someone there. He simply leaned across the tree and pulled out his famous book, then started to read.

The teenage girl threw a disgusted look at Kakashi's reading material, then stood up shakily. "I'm going for a walk," she murmured as she stumbled away with no particular destination in mind. Kakashi nodded, now engrossed deeply in his book.

She slowly made her way to the building she lived in, not noticing the looks of sympathy coming from the people who knew of her situation. Some nastier kids would snicker at how pathetic she was, but Mitsumi ignored them all. She couldn't care less about what they thought of her anymore.

Once she was at her doorstep, she produced a key and slipped it in the doorknob, then let herself in. But when her turquoise eyes fell on Kenoyo's empty bed, the tears that she had so harshly tried to stop now cascaded down her face.

"What am I going to do…" she whispered to herself as she sunk to her knees and buried her face in her hands.

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A/N: Okay, chapter one is done. I know it's not much, not very interesting, but I have to put up this chapter so that you guys will know the setting.

There's no need to review, I won't be pissed if I don't get a single review since it's not much of a chapter, more like an introduction. I don't even talk about Sasuke! Next one will be better, I promise! And longer too, because if I wanted to work on my next idea, it would've taken up about 1000 more words! So it'll be part of chapter two!

Take care


	2. Kakashi's Offer

Disclaimer   
Me: I OWN MITSUMI! WOOT!

Others: Who cares?

Me: … I do! 

Others: Do you own anything else?

Me: … Be quiet! .  
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**Chapter two: Kakashi's Offer**

Mitsumi woke up the next morning to a knock at her door. She had cried herself to sleep, and now her turquoise eyes were puffy and the contour was now tinted red. She gave herself a quick look in the mirror, then shrugged and trudged on towards the front door.

After clearing her voice, she leaned against the wall and asked, "Who is it?"

"It's me, Kakashi," the Sensei said from the other side of the door. Mitsumi sighed and ran a finger through the tangled mass she called her hair. "Am I bothering you?"

"No no, I just woke up… can you hold on a minute, though?" she called back, her voice still strained from her sleepy state.

Kakashi's answer came immediately, "I'll give you time for a shower, how's that? I'll be outside the building, meet me there!" She leaned against the door tiredly as she heard his footsteps fade away. But Mitsumi didn't want to make him wait, so she showered quickly, pulled up her long hair in a ponytail, then got dressed and left her apartment.

The morning sun was out, glowing brightly in the bright blue sky. Mitsumi glared at the ball of fire, wondering if it was mocking her horrible mood. But she didn't have much time to reflect on it since she noticed Kakashi seated on a bench a few feet in front of her, his eyes following the lines on his book. The teenager knew that unless she went to sit with him, she'd stay standing up staring at him for hours, so she pressed forward and dropped beside him on the rusted metal.

The Sensei's eyes snapped up from his book, and he smiled as he noticed she was finally out of the apartment. "Good morning, Mitsumi!" he said cheerfully, placing his book into the bag he carried around.

The girl peeked down at his bag in slight surprise; it was rare that Kakashi would put away his most prized possession. But it was nice to get his full attention for once. "Good morning to you too," she answered him, though her face stayed as stoic as a stone.

"I have an offer for you!" he exclaimed, ignoring her sulking state. But Mitsumi didn't answer; she only stared at him with no expression on her pale face. 

Kakashi sighed slightly at her lack of enthusiasm. But he didn't give up; she deserved to have a teacher as much as everyone else. "Listen, Mitsumi. You're nearly old enough to become a Sensei yourself, but there are some things you just have problems learning. That's why I came up with this proposition. My old student, Uchiha Sasuke, will help you with some things you've been struggling with," he said softly, gazing right into her face with his uncovered eye.

Mitsumi looked up at him quizzically. Kakashi didn't have to tell her who Sasuke was, every single person in Konoha knew him! But then the initial shock left to give place to suspicion as she asked, "Did he volunteer or is he forced to do this?"

Kakashi grinned uneasily and scratched the back of his head in a nervous fashion. "Well, not really… He kind of didn't have a choice. And neither do you. It's that or nothing, and if you pick the nothing, the Academy wouldn't have a reason to fund your apartment anymore…" he stopped abruptly as he saw the look on her face.

Mitsumi's mouth hung open in total disbelief. She _had_ to train with Sasuke or else she'd get thrown out into the street? She hadn't been really enchanted to have to train with the almost perfect ninja, and had been tempted to refuse the offer, but now she had no choice!

"Can't I train with someone slightly less demanding!?" Mitsumi lashed back at him, her eyes tainted with disgust. "He's going to push me until I'm passed out on the ground, then he'll mutter that I'm weak and he'll leave me there to die!"

Kakashi's arm fell back to his side as he chuckled softly and shook his head. "Now, now, Mitsumi, you know he wouldn't do that! He might push you hard, but it'll be the exact opposite of what Tadashi used to do. Maybe it'll do you some good, a big change for—"

"But I was happy with Tadashi! Sasuke's going to pulverize me!" she whined, wincing as she imagined what might happen if he got too impatient with her.

The Sensei's face darkened slightly with her statement and the girl's whimpers stopped short. "Listen, Mitsumi, this is a big favor I'm doing to you. I believe you're stronger than what you let everyone see, and if Sasuke can make you blossom, then so be it. Do you know how many boys and girls would kill to be in your position right now? It's a big privilege that I'm according to you, so instead of whining you should be thanking me!"

The student lowered her head and numbly nodded before murmuring, "Thank you, Kakashi. You're completely right, and I'm sorry… Is there any way I can repay you?"

His hard face fell with compassion as he leaned over and put a hand on her shoulder, making her look up at him. "I have faith in you, Mitsumi. Sasuke will be a good teacher, promise." The Sensei stopped, looking in the distance as a thought slipped in his mind.

_'I don't want her to fall in love with him and start messing up her practices like most girls would. Should I talk to her about it?'_ he asked himself, returning his gaze to Mitsumi. But then he shook his head and smiled sadly to himself. _'She's smarter than that. And anyways, if she does, Sasuke will be quick to dismiss her.'_

Instead, he gently said, "Just make sure you try not to annoy him uselessly. Be there when he tells you to, and do everything he says. Even if his orders seem bizarre, execute them without complaining. Don't get on his nerves. That's the only way you can pay me back."

Mitsumi listened to him intently, but her fingers were now cold with nerves. She nodded simply, and he stood up and gave her a small bow. "Good! Now have a good day, and try to relax! Sasuke'll surely come to see you soon to talk to you about your first training session!"

And with those words, he was gone, leaving a still shocked Mitsumi behind. She stayed put for about ten minutes, staring off at the sky. She couldn't believe that he was actually doing that to her. Pairing one of the weakest ninja with one of the best seemed so stupid of him, but as Kakashi said, maybe he'd be a positive influence on her.

Sighing, Mitsumi pushed back her chocolate-colored hair and turned her head to her right to look at a few children playing together. They were so happy, so peaceful… She sighed and stood up, longing to be that carefree. But she knew that it would never happen, she had to meet up with Sasuke sometimes today and something told her that she was falling into Hell itself. 

Mitsumi turned her eyes around, looking at her apartment as she wondered what to do next. But a movement caught her stare and she snapped her attention back to the bench she had just been sitting on.

Sasuke stared back at her emotionlessly, making her blink in surprise. He was seated exactly where Kakashi had sat a while ago, but she hadn't either felt nor saw him sit down.

_'Since when has **he** been there?'_ the teenage girl asked herself, forcing the surprise to leave her face as she studied him carefully. Even at eighteen, he still had his hair in the same style as when she had met him five years ago. His clothing was casual, and he regarded her with a cool, yet slightly bothered stare.

_' I might as well say something, it's obvious he won't,_' she thought to herself with a sigh as she sat down beside him. But she was familiar enough with his reputation to know that he probably hated her right now.

"I'm sorry, Sasuke. I know that you don't want to train me, and I wasn't enchanted with the idea either," she said, hoping it would somehow calm the ninja down.

He drew in a long breath, then slowly let it out, making her anticipation grow. It wasn't her fault, after all, if she had been left behind. But he stood up and looked down at her, his face hard. 

"Tomorrow morning, I want you in front of the Academy at six thirty. Also, I'm not like Kakashi. With him, you could arrive an hour late and you'd still be earlier than he. But I want you there on time, and if you can manage to arrive five minutes earlier, do," he ordered, his deep voice commanding.

Mitsumi nodded, but as his stare kept drilling into her she spoke up, "I'll be there! I won't make you wait!"

Sasuke nodded, then turned his back and in under a few seconds, he was gone. The teenage girl breathed a long sigh of relief, leaning across the bench. _'That was stressful,'_ she thought, closing her eyes as she tried to slow down her racing heartbeat. Her mind drifted to all the girls who freaked out over the Uchiha boy, and she wondered how they'd be reacting if he had just given them that speech.

A smirk crossed her lips as another thought slipped through her mind. _'Let's just say their heart would be racing for a much different reason. But seriously, I don't know how they can fall for a guy like him, he's so cold!'_

Mitsumi got up and, after looking at her watch, noticed it was nearly noon. But instead of going to eat out, she walked back to her apartment. She was going to need all the rest she could gather before tomorrow's training session.

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A/N: Here we go, chapter two! Hope you guys liked it more than chapter one since something actually happened in this one! And now, there is no reason for you guys not to review. Thanks for the two who actually took the time to do so.

Look out for chapter three, their first training session!

Take care!


	3. The Tests

Disclaimer   
I own Mitsumi:)  
… But I don't own anything else :(  
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**Chapter three: The Tests**

A snicker reached Mitsumi's ears, making her want to kick her teacher right in the head. She glared at the haughty look on his face, seriously considering going to pick up that kunai and toss it right at Sasuke's chest as hard as she could just so _she_ could be the one snickering at _him_. 

But she didn't, of course.

The kunoichi-in-training shook her head in anger and went to pick up the kunai she had just thrown at the target, then stepped back at her original position wordlessly, completely ignoring Sasuke. After focusing for a few seconds, she roughly threw the dart-like object at the dead tree stump, but it once again struck the side of it instead of the dead middle.

Another snicker.

Disgusted with her, the raven-haired boy asked out loud, "Are you sure you've been throwing those since you started training with the Academy?" 

Mitsumi didn't listen; she simply went to retrieve the kunai, and then repeated the exact same move only to fail again. 

"Hai," she snapped back at him, sick of this stupid accuracy test. Alright, so throwing the little iron weapon around wasn't her thing, so what?

It didn't help that she was in a foul mood. She had been there at six-thirty sharp, just like he'd asked. But the little jerk had made her wait fifteen minutes, then with no explanation for his tardiness, had told her to follow him. Mitsumi had bit her tongue to keep herself from snapping at the shinobi, but had followed him anyways.

He brought her to a forest just outside Konoha, not saying a word to her. Then, having made his way to a clearing, he had propped up a tree trunk on its side on a second vertical trunk so it would be at about her level. Afterwards, he had handed her a kunai and had told her to hit it in the middle. Which she was trying to do right now.

"You're not doing it right," Sasuke sighed impatiently, making Mitsumi roll her eyes. If he wanted to do his smartass, she was going to play right back with him.

"Obviously, since I'm not hitting it in the middle!" she hissed, glaring at him. "Instead of snickering at me, you should be telling me what I'm doing wrong! It's not easy to throw that thing with deadly accuracy!"

Sasuke didn't seem to appreciate the attitude, but he went to pick up the kunai and stepped beside her. He studied the tree trunk, then closed his eyes, waited a few more seconds, then threw it.

"Okay, so you know how to throw it. But I'm the one who should be practicing, not you!" she exclaimed bitterly as the kunai hit the target right in the middle.

He snickered again, then produced a second kunai from his pocked and handed it to her. Mitsumi grabbed it without a second thought and prepared herself to throw it. She pulled her wrist back like Tadashi had taught her to, then transferred her weight forward to her other leg and extended her arm rapidly to throw it.

Just when her hand was about to release the weapon, Sasuke grabbed her wrist to stop her. She gave him a sharp glare, wondering what he was doing, but then he raised her arm about an inch higher, then stepped back and nodded. Mitsumi almost laughed in his face as she drew back, and then threw the kunai with her hand slightly higher than usual.

_PANG_

The teenage girl blinked it surprise as her kunai bounced off the one that was planted in the middle. If Sasuke had taken out the weapon he had thrown before, hers would've been in the dead center.

"Wow…" she whispered, looking at the fallen piece of iron on the grass. "Thank you!"

Sasuke smirked slightly, shaking his head. "Details actually matter, Mitsumi. But when you go into battles and you're in a dangerous position, screw the accuracy. Just throw as hard as you can and only make sure it'll hit the person," he said, stepping forward to pick up the kunais as she nodded in understanding. He slipped them back in his pocket and turned towards her, a small gleam appearing in his coal black eyes.

"Now let's test out your balance!" he said, turning his back to her and starting to walk.

Mitsumi immediately winced, but followed him anyways. That had always been a big issue to her; she was absolutely horrible at keeping her balance. _'This is just great,'_ she told herself. _'If Sasuke smirked at my throwing skills, he'll probably die of laughter at seeing me walk on a beam or whatever he wants me to do!'_

---

Mitsumi groaned in complete embarrassment as she looked up at the balance beams that the Academy had just gotten built. They were about ten feet up in the air, and the boards were half a foot by one foot wide. 

"Jump on up, there's a good wind this morning. We'll see how long you can manage to stay!" Sasuke ordered, jumping up himself on one beam. He stayed perfectly still, not even slightly swaying as he looked down at her expectantly.

The girl sighed and looked up at her teacher, then asked bitterly, "What will it do if I jump on there anyways? Aren't you supposed to teach me jutsus and techniques?"

Sasuke rolled his eyes impatiently, and then shouted back, "I have to test out your skills before I can teach you anything. Now do it!"

Mitsumi didn't wait another second; she didn't exactly enjoy his commanding tone. At least she had no problems with her jumping. She jumped up exactly on the beam, waving her arms frantically around herself so she wouldn't fall. After a few seconds of struggling, though, she lost her balance and went crashing face first into the sand below. The girl winced again and closed her eyes, expecting to hear laughter coming from Sasuke.

But it didn't come.

She then rolled on her back and looked up at him meekly as she brushed the sand away from her face. He was looking into the distance, shaking his head lightly. But the expression on his face made Mitsumi want to run away. He looked disappointed and disgusted with her, not even finding it funny anymore.

The teenage girl got up and jumped back on the beam. It took about ten tries before she was able to stand straight without falling. She shot Sasuke an almost pleading glance, hoping he wouldn't be mean to her and would congratulate her with her effort. 

But the disappointment wasn't leaving his face. He pushed back his raven hair as he shook his head again, then jumped down from his beam. "Be here tomorrow at the same time, we'll practice again," he said roughly, and without another word, left.

Mitsumi jumped down also, then sunk to her knees as frustration filled her mind. She gripped sand into her fists, then threw it back down and stood up. She would get better for Sasuke. She would show him that she can become a great shinobi like he is. And one day, he wouldn't be the one laughing anymore.

The teenage girl made her way back to her apartment, her body sore. Falling a dozen of times from the beam wasn't exactly therapeutic for her back, and she was now feeling the painful effect of the ground. Plus she had to start again tomorrow.

Unlocking her door, Mitsumi let herself in and shut the door behind her, then fell down on her bed and allowed herself to relax. But then Sasuke's snickers came back in her mind, fueling her anger. She sat up and looked at the ceiling, then suddenly shouted as loud as she could,

"I hate you, Sasuke Uchiha!"

A/N: Here we go, chapter three!

Hard to believe that it's actually a romance! XD But yes, I promise, things will get better. And maybe in the next chapter, if I get loads of reviews. 'Cause like you people know, I looove reviews!

Take care!


	4. Jealous Much?

Disclaimer   
-Sobs- I wish I would own them…  
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**Chapter four: Jealous Much?**

"Finally!" Sasuke said lazily, stretching his arms above his head.

"I practiced, Sasuke-Sensei!" Mitsumi said, smirking at the nickname as he shot her an annoyed glance.

She had woken up extra early to be able to come over and practice her balance. There was no wind this morning, so it had been easy to be a little bit more adventurous with her skills. The girl found herself able to jump in place on the beam, and able to hang on her toes on the very edge of the beam without falling.

And then her teacher had arrived, and had told her to jump up. Proud to show him her skills, she had executed his orders to perfection, making him look slightly surprised. But he had still given her a few hints on how to make sure she wouldn't fall, and Mitsumi forced herself as hard as she could to impress him, even if it didn't quite work.

"I guess I just had an off day yesterday," she apologized, smiling at him as she easily balanced herself on the tip of her toes. The teen knew it was a big lie; she was just lucky that there was no wind this morning, but she kept quiet and hoped he wouldn't comment about it.

Sasuke didn't smile back; he had obviously something else he wanted her to learn this morning. She sighed and shifted her weight impatiently, her eyes roaming across the occupied beams. Out of the lot of about 20, there were only 5 empty ones. But as she looked around her she noticed a quite familiar face glaring at her.

Harone Sakura.

Mitsumi didn't particularly like the girl, so she focused her attention back on Sasuke. In fact, it was well known that the pink-haired kunoichi had fallen head over heels for the Uchiha boy years ago, and seeing him train with her must probably make her angry. It was, in fact, making her completely furious and drowned her in jealousy as she watched the pair.

Sasuke seemed to want to give her a long speech, so Mitsumi shut off everyone around her to focus only on him. 

"Some shinoibi will obviously try to empower you with size or proximity," Sasuke started, looking at her intensely. "You have to always make sure to stand your ground and to back up before nothing less than a life or death situation. Don't show them your fear, it will only empower them and make you weaker."

Mitsumi actually smirked. "Proximity? You mean they'll try to intimidate me by coming _close_ to me? How is that supposed to work?" She raised her turquoise eyes to meet his jet black ones, almost as if challenging him to prove it.

Sasuke shot her a smirk of his own, accepting the silent request for a challenge. "Indeed. I can easily make you fall right now without touching you, nor using a single weapon or jutsus!" He tilted his head in confidence, a cocky look on his handsome face.

The girl kept the cool look on hers, but a small knot began to build itself in her stomach. She studied his face carefully, seeing he was serious, but she still wanted him to prove it. Her imagination whirred with what might happen in the next few seconds, but she couldn't see what he meant.

"Bring it on," she said sweetly, a smile growing on her face. But she soon turned her expression back to a stoic, concentrated face. The girl couldn't let herself be distracted by anything now, especially since she had just thrown a challenge at one of the most well-known shinobi in Konoha.

Sasuke smirked again, then swiftly jumped forward and landed on the other extremity of the beam she was standing on. His body then straightened, and he glared down at her with an intimidating glare in his face without touching her. Her teacher's sudden closeness, mixed with a sense having him intruding her personal space, made her take a step back to enlarge the small gap between the two.

Big mistake.

Her foot had nothing to land onto, and she soon found herself hitting the sandy ground with a painful thump. A second later, she heard a small noise about a foot away from her and opened her eyes to see Sasuke's feet right beside her body. The girl peeked back at his face with a defeated expression as she mumbled, "Fine, you were right. I'll have to work on that too."

"I'll see you tomorrow," he said plainly, yet a trace of a smile appeared at the corner of his mouth before he left.

As the girl blinked and tried to regain the breaths she had lost upon contact with the ground, she heard some girls snickering together. Surely they were laughing about her fall. She groaned and rubbed her forehead pensively, wondering who those girls were exactly and how she could make them stop laughing. 

Mitsumi then stopped her hand on her throbbing forehead as the afternoon sun blazed down on her. Yet a comforting thought was running through her mind. At least this practice hadn't been that bad. Sasuke didn't seem to think she was completely useless now, so that was a definite bonus for her.

The sun that was annoying her was cut off rather suddenly as someone stepped in front of her figure. Mitsumi peeked up at the person, and then smiled in a friendly fashion even if she wasn't feeling nice at the moment. 

"Hi, Sakura!" she said, thinking that the other girl was coming to help her get up after her nasty fall. But the pink-haired kunoichi had her arms crossed and her glare was riveted on the girl at her feet, not giving the slightest indication of feeling pity for her.

Hating the feeling of someone towering above her, Mitsumi got up slowly and looked back at her, wondering what she wanted exactly. After a few seconds, she was on the verge of asking her what she wanted when Sakura's high-pitched voice snapped out, "Stay away from Sasuke, got it?"

The brown-haired girl couldn't help herself; she burst into a fit of laugher that seemed to throw Sakura off slightly. "Oh come on, Sakura! You're so over-reacting, Sasuke is my teacher now! It would be so weird to get together! I never considered it, and I never will! Just last night I went to sleep thinking about how much I hated him for embarrassing me all the time! Don't be so jealous!" she exclaimed, then burst in another fit of laughter.

Sakura just gave her another glare, and then left with the threat still pending. Still shaking her head with mirth, Mitsumi turned to go back home. But she started to laugh again as a thought filtered her mind.

_'The hot, popular Uchiha Sasuke and I! Right, like that'll happen!'_

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_A/N: Thanks to the people who reviewed! I appreciate it so much! You guys don't know how it makes me happy to get reviews!

Now, time to bribe: If I get loads of review, I promise that the next chapter will be really cute! So review away, everybody!

Take care!


	5. The Midnight Attack

Disclaimer   
-Sobs- I wish I would own them…

Dedication  
Big time dedication of this chapter to Zia! Thank you so much for helping us with the sketch at school the other day! Love ya lots!   
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**Chapter five: The Midnight Attack  
**  
--Sasuke's P.O.V--

Sasuke was sitting on the same bench that he had met Mitsumi on, looking up at the window of her apartment. His mind was whirring with thoughts, thoughts that surprised him more than anything. He found himself thinking about a girl. But not any girl. His very own student, a weakling who struggled to do the simplest task, had captured his mind in the last week he trained with her. It had gone by so fast, and every single day the thoughts of her were getting stronger and stronger.

The shinobi didn't know what made him come to sit in front of the place she lived in, but he came anyways. There was something in his mind, a plan that he had, but wasn't sure if he should go through with it. So for now, he was simply reflecting on her beautiful face.

_'It's really nice to actually talk with a female who doesn't act like a fan girl for once. A very nice change from Sakura and Ino. Those two girls could drop dead for all I care, but Mitsumi's different. She only sees me as a teacher, maybe that's why she's in my thoughts. I want what I can't have,'_ Sasuke thought as he peeked back at her window. But then he decided that he was going to do it.

It was a nice night, the moon was out and was basking the whole village in a peaceful glow. The temperature wasn't hot, but the cold produced by the wind was bearable. A perfect night for what he had in mind. Mitsumi's self-confidence was horrible; she needed to realize that someone loved her. Exactly what Sasuke intended to do.

The raven-haired boy sighed and stood up, then slipped into the lobby of the apartment, to finally climb up the stairs until he got to her hall. Taking in deep breath, he pressed his ear to her door, but no sound came out. Figuring she was asleep, he smirked. This was perfect.

Sasuke then raised his fist and hit it a few times against the door, certain the noise would wake her up. Swiftly moving over, he leaned against the wall and waited for her to open. 

--Normal P.O.V--

The knocks jerked Mitsumi awake, and she painfully sat up. The training had gotten harder and harder in the last week, and she was exhausted most of the time. But her suffering was paying off, she now felt stronger than ever.

The girl left her bed and tiptoed to the door, then called out weakly, "Who is it?"

Sasuke didn't answer; he only knocked again, which ignited a fear in Mitsumi's heart. Who in the world would come and knock at her bedroom door at this hour of the night without announcing themselves? It could be anyone from a thief and murderer to a lost child or an injured person.

It was true that after Kenoyo and Tadashi left, she had been really nervous. She couldn't trust anyone beside Sasuke and Kakashi, but she rarely talked to the latter. Most of her days were spent alone, but she didn't mind that much. Solitude was better than trusting and getting hurt again, anyways.

Finally, when the person knocked a third time, she grasped the doorknob and pushed the door open, chiding herself for panicking so much.

When Sasuke heard the door opening, he lowered his head so she wouldn't recognize him and pushed the door wide open. In one fluid motion, he had rushed behind his student, clasped her arms tightly on her own body with one of his, and had covered her mouth with his other hand so she wouldn't scream and alert anyone. She started to struggle, but he tightened his grasp on her and kicked the door closed.

After a while, Mitsumi finally stopped struggling, but stood up straight, waiting for him to do something so she could wrench out of his grasp. Even if she was petrified, she knew that if she didn't tempt anything, her attacker could easily kill her. But the girl soon found herself trembling in fear, and since his chest was right on her back she knew that he could feel her frantic heartbeat.

Sasuke smirked slightly, and then leaned over to breathe in her scent. It felt good to be able to hold her close to him, even if it was against her will. But he knew that he had to announce himself soon or she'd probably attack him. The shinobi leaned over, and she shivered as she felt his warm breath on her neck He placed his mouth close to her ear, then murmured, "You're lucky I'm not somebody else, or you'd be dead by now."

Hearing Sasuke's voice, Mitsumi broke out of his now loose grasp and turned to face him, gawking in disbelief. But the shock soon turned into anger as she snapped, "How dare you do this to me!? I could've attacked you and hurt you!"

That made the Konoha ninja laugh, shaking his head as he murmured, "You couldn't hurt me if you tried, especially not at the moment. You just got out of bed; you're still broken from your sleep." 

Mitsumi crossed her arms against her chest, glaring at him angrily as he looked her over. Slightly tattered blue pajama pants with an oversized black t-shirt. Her hair was disheveled, but she didn't seem to care.

Finally, after a short pause, she hissed impatiently, "What do you want, anyways?"

Sasuke's smirk didn't leave his lips as he said softly, "I want you to come outside, right now, and train with me."

Mitsumi couldn't believe her ears. _'Is this guy crazy?'_ she asked herself, looking at him as if he was a completely different person. But he was, after all, her teacher. She didn't have much choice, so if he told her to get dressed and go out, she had to do it. Finally, she uttered, "Okay. Leave now, I'll get ready and I'll join you outside!"

But Sasuke had other plans in mind. He grabbed a jacket she had left lying on the floor and took her wrist in his hands, then dragged her outside.

Once they were out, Mitsumi peeked around self-consciously at the few people walking around. She began to look down at her bed clothes and jacket, and she then began pushing her hair back and running her fingers through them. Her teacher noticed her actions and led the way to the training grounds. Since it was nearly midnight, he knew that it would be empty at this hour.

"We're going to do the same exercise we did last week with the balance beam. Jump up," he said, knowing full well he was only doing this so he could be close to her again. But Mitsumi didn't seem to realize that as she jumped up and braced herself, waiting for him patiently.

Finally, he jumped up in front of her, and after a few seconds he lowering his black eyes to meet her turquoise ones. Mitsumi's heart began to race as she looked up at him close up. He was really handsome; she easily understood why most girls would fall for him. But then she stopped and shook her head slightly.

_'He's my teacher, for goodness' sake. This is so wrong,'_ she told herself, wincing. Just as she thought that, she took a step back without thinking, then immediately found herself falling backwards. But then Sasuke caught her arms, stopping her fall. He drew her back on the beam and pulled her close to his chest, keeping her arms in his protective hands. 

Mitsumi looked back at him, the surprise evident on her face. At any other time, he would've let her fall and would've laughed. But when she saw the look in his eyes, the look that told her he definitely saw her as more than a student, she brought her hands up to his chest and gently pushed him away.

"I'm sorry, Sasuke. But you're my teacher, and this is wrong. Our relationship shouldn't go farther than that," she whispered, but the second the words left her lips she realized that she didn't mean them at all. She did want to slip her arms around his neck and to pull him close to her, to be able to tell the whole world that the Uchiha boy was hers.

Sasuke obviously saw her lie in her face, but he didn't say anything about it. Instead, he squeezed her arms and gave her a smile. A real, genuine smile.

Mitsumi grinned, thankful that he was holding onto her. Her knees began to weaken, and she felt as if she was slipping into a fantasy. But the shinobi's voice snapped her out of her thoughts as he said, "It's too late to train. Why don't we just walk around the village for a while before I bring you back home?"

The girl smiled and nodded before jumping down the beam, then looked at him as he landed beside her. Afterwards, the pair began to walk wordlessly under the shining moonlight, just savoring the perfect taste of being able to share this precious moment together. 

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A/N: Alright, so I know that I promised a cute chapter. It's not that cute, but they do acknowledge their feelings for each other. I know it's corny…

I want reviews! I love reviews! I'm not getting much for this story, but big thanks to those who do! You guys bring me so much joy!

Especially ShinraTurk-Krena, thanks for reviewing every single chapter!

Take care!


	6. The First Kill

Disclaimer   
-Sigh- Wishful thinking…

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**Chapter Six: The First Kill  
  
**Crash!!

Thunder racked the village of Konoha, followed by a slight drizzle of rain. The sky was grey, the streets were dark, and houses were filled by its occupants. No one dared to go outside. No one but…

Mitsumi did the hand signals necessary, calling them out loud as she did them. Finally, she called out her attack, Lightning no Jutsu, and a flash of light racked the clouds, soon followed by a loud thunder roll.

"Not bad," Sasuke said, leaning against a tree that shielded him from the rain. They were back in the same clearing she had done her first test with the kunais in; it was safer that way than to be surrounded by houses in case something went wrong.

Mitsumi lowered her head in shame; she still hadn't gotten the desired results. Lightning was supposed to come down from the sky and hit the target, but all she could manage is spark up the sky.

"How's your chakra doing? We've been training for an hour now," he commented, watching her face as if daring her to lie to him.

But the girl answered truthfully, "It's getting low, I'm exhausted." 

"We'll call it a day then. The weather's not that good anyways," he said as the thunder racked the sky again after a lightning flashed, lighting each other's faces in the darkened forest.

Mitsumi sighed in relief, but then froze and broke into a smile as Sasuke started to walk towards her with _the_ look in his eyes. She felt herself shiver with anticipation as he slowly made his way to the girl he loved. Three days had passed since they'd both acknowledged their feelings for each other, but Sasuke was very professional about it. When they were training, he would shout orders at her and treat her just like before. But afterwards, if they were alone, he'd grow warmer and would walk her to her apartment. He never let anything be seen in public, which was just fine with Mitsumi. She didn't exactly want Sakura bitching after her all the time.

When Sasuke was about two feet from her, he stopped dead in his tracks and his face turned emotionless, focused. He felt the amount of chakra approaching them, and he knew it wasn't from anyone in Konoha. The shinobi projected his senses around him and soon realized that about ten Sound Ninjas were coming towards them.

_'Ten Chuunins against one Chuunin and a Jounin. Odds could be better, but we can massacre them,'_ Sasuke told himself with an evil smirk, taking out a kunai and putting a finger to his lips, signaling Mitsumi to be quiet. He quietly turned around, watching the trees that surrounded the small clearing. They weren't in the best spot, but that would have to do. There was no time for them to run for the trees, so the battle would have to be on open ground.

"Sound Nins," he whispered to her, his eyes alert. "Prepare yourself, we're going to bunch them all together and then I'll use my Chidori on them. Don't do anything reckless, understood?"

Mitsumi's eyes widened at the mention of an attack, but she quickly got herself back together and nodded, then got ready for the ambush.

A few tensed minutes passed before the silence was shattered. The group of ten fell against the pair at a frightening speed, but Sasuke kept his cool and immediately threw a kunai at one opponent, hard. It hit him right in the chest and he fell backwards, dead.

The fallen boy's neighbor stopped in his tracks upon seeing his friend, and Mitsumi took advantage of his pause to throw a kunai of her own. The weapon buried itself in his stomach and he doubled over, dead also.

The pair threw all the kunais they had on them in less than five minutes, killing six out of the pack. Finally, she heard Sasuke shout, "Get over here!" 

It didn't take half a second for her to be on his side as he quickly did the hand signals necessary, and then threw his Chidori right at the remaining four. It killed them instantly, and their mangled bodies fell upon the grass, staining it red.

Through the whole battle, Mitsumi's ears had rung in her mind, keeping her focused on the task. But now everything was dead silent except for the rain that splattered on her now soaked body, and she suddenly realized she was freezing cold. Shivering, the teenage girl watched the bloody bodies of the fallen at her feet, realizing she had killed one out of the pack. She had killed him. He had died by her hand. 

Her turquoise eyes never left the boy's body. Her kunai was still deeply encrusted in his stomach, and the sight made her want to scream. Finally, she felt Sasuke putting his arm around her and pulling her away from them, and she numbly followed him, away from the clearing.

After a few feet, Sasuke noticed that she was still in shock. Her eyes were unfocused, glazed, and she was only walking because he forced her to. The shinobi stopped his student and went to face her, then murmured, "The first kill is always the worse. You'll get used to it after a while."

It sounded so cruel, so heartless, that Mitsumi broke down in tears, covering her face with her hands shamefully. Sasuke looked at her for a few seconds, then looked around. They were alone, so he slipped forward and wrapped his arms tightly around her, pulling her close to him. 

Mitsumi leaned against him, grabbing his shirt with both fists as she wept in his arms. She buried her face in his neck, shutting her eyes tightly as he held her possessively. Even if the shinobi was slightly impatient, he held her until she raised her eyes to meet his. The rain had doubled in intensity, and was now running down his face.

They were both soaking wet, but neither really cared. They had just escaped death, together. He gently leaned over and pressed his forehead against hers, tightening his arms around her back before whispering, "You'll be okay. I'm here for you, remember that. I'm so proud of you, Mitsumi…"

That made the girl smile as she brushed her tears away. But it was useless since her face was soaked. But then Sasuke let her go as he said gently, "Let's get you back home. You deserve to rest." 

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A/N: I know, reviewers, my chapters aren't that cute! Actually, the next… two chapters won't have anything that cute in them, but after that I promise you fluff!

Take care!


	7. A Busy Night

Disclaimer   
Maybe one day I'll buy the company… And then I'll buy a pony for Zia… But for now, I don't have any money. You do the math.

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**Chapter Seven: A Busy Night**

"There's trouble coming from Sound Village," Sasuke said, frowning with disgust at the enemy village's name. "There are some rumors of a future invasion."

Mitsumi nodded, but she could feel the fear slipping into her stomach. It was nothing, after all. They had battled Sound Ninjas just earlier today. But she knew that this time, they wouldn't send single Chuunins, they'd send full-trained Jounins. The group of ten they had battled before were probably sent to warn them.

Well, they didn't get far.

Sasuke and Mitsumi were in Kakashi's office, waiting for the older man to return while they chatted. The shinobi noticed the frightened expression in Mitsumi's eyes and leaned over to take her hand gently. "I'll protect you until my death, Mitsumi. There's nothing that will happen to you as long as I'm around, promise," he murmured reassuringly.

The teenage girl nodded, but took her hand away from his. It was a good thing she did so, because Kakashi burst forth in the room with a bag. He was wearing a long, dark cloak over a uniform and had a mask in his hand. His ANBU costume. He didn't seem surprised to see the pair in his office, but didn't ask them what they were here for. Instead, he eyed them warily before saying, "Listen, guys, we don't really have time to sit down and talk. We had a report of Sound Ninjas already sneaking in the village and I have work to do!"

Kakashi then approached Sasuke and said quickly, "I'm not supposed to do this, but I don't have much choice. We have to trap those spies as quickly as possible. I'd need your help, if you don't mind coming along with me for tonight?"

Sasuke seemed slightly surprised at the invitation, but nodded and took the bag Kakashi was handing to him, pulling out a similar ANBU costume.

Just when he took the bag, Kakashi shot a look in Mitsumi's direction and said, "You cannot tell anyone that Sasuke's working with me tonight, okay Mitsumi? You should go back to your place and go to sleep, but don't worry. The city's squirming with Konoha Ninjas, even if you can't see them. There's nothing that will happen to you."

With that, Sasuke's old teacher turned on his heels and walked out of the room. Sasuke now had a dark cloak on to match Kakashi's, and he was just drawing the hood on his head. But when he noticed Kakashi was gone, he stepped closer to Mitsumi and took her face in his hands, plunging his eyes deeply in hers. As he did so, he took his now useless jacket and draped it over her shoulders gently.

"Be careful outside. Be very careful," he warned her softly, then leaned over and brushed his lips against her forehead. With that action, he also turned and left the room while slipping the mask on his face.

"Be careful too," Mitsumi called out after him, then walked towards the window and waited until she saw the pair leave out of the Academy doors. Afterwards, she waited a few minutes and then left herself after slipping on Sasuke's jacket properly. He had just kissed her. On the forehead, okay, but he had still kissed her.

Mitsumi smiled, despite the situation. She knew that she could count on her Sasuke to protect her and the village.

The night was dark, and the smell of the morning's storm was still brewing in the air, giving off a calm sense to the town. Even then, Mitsumi felt the tiredness of the day seeping in her veins, so she picked up her pace to get home quicker. Yet after a while, she stopped and looked to her right. A tight alley was squeezed through two houses, and it would lead her directly to her apartment instead of taking the long way around ten houses.

The girl winced slightly, not wanting to be alone in a small alley in the middle of the night. But then something caught her attention. She stared up at the roof of one house, seeing someone quickly draw back. 

_'Probably an ANBU member,_' she told herself, immediately feeling safer. Therefore, trusting her instincts only, Mitsumi pushed forward in the alley, being quickly followed by the man's eyes. But she didn't get far.

Once she was completely smothered in darkness, the man jumped from the roof and began to trace her steps quietly. Oblivious to her follower, the teenage girl kept on walking until the light at the end of the narrow pathway vanished, blocked by someone. She froze, but then whirled around to go back to the other side, yet found herself running right into the first man.

In under a second, the pair had roughly thrown her on the ground and had shoved her face on the ground, stunning her with a blow to the head so she wouldn't scream. Before she could recover from the blow, they opened a door on the side of the alley and stepped inside with her, then shut the door behind them once the trio was safely in.

"Now don't you dare scream," one of the men grumbled angrily, and she soon felt a kunai at her throat. They bonded her wrists together behind her back and tied up her feet before opening a trap door in the middle of the empty room before rolling the girl down the hole. She fell down a small flight of stairs to land on pure cement, hard.

The second voice then spoke up and said, "We'll leave her down here for the night. No one will hear her no matter how hard she shouts for help. We're safe."

His companion agreed, and Mitsumi heard the trap door close with a heavy snap. The footsteps above her eventually faded away and she struggled to roll onto her back, breathing hard. Since her arms were tied, she had no way to grab the kunai safely tucked away inside Sasuke's jacket. Groaning, the teen gazed at the trap door, wondering what was going on right now outside of her cell.

--Sasuke's P.O.V--

The slits of the mask were small, but the shinobi forced himself to look through them. He found it useless to have to wear the mask, but it would conceal his identity. Not that he cared if anyone would happen to notice him, yet Sasuke knew it was in his best intentions that he'd wear it.

Beside the troublesome mask, the ANBU costume fit him nicely. He had no problem with the heavy armor-like protection on his body, and the katana was a mere amount of weight on his back.

Kakashi stopped on the roof of a house, then crouched and motioned to Sasuke quickly. He stopped beside his former teacher and listened intently. Birds. A dog. Footsteps.

Wait… footsteps?

Kakashi and his ancient student looked at each other, nodded, and then jumped down quickly, surrounding the walking figure.

"Wait! I'm on your side!" the ANBU shouted, looking at his fellow working partners.

Kakashi sighed and took off his mask, glaring slightly at the careless ANBU. "How dare you walk out like that in the open? You could've gotten killed!" he sighed impatiently, making the ANBU shrug.

"I was waiting to see if a Sound Ninja would attack me," he apologized.

Kakashi accepted that excuse and placed the mask on his face, then motioned to the ever-silent Sasuke to follow him. They both left the third man behind as he continued to walk through the streets.

"This is going to be a long night," Sasuke mumbled to himself, following Kakashi wordlessly.

--Mitsumi's P.O.V--

With one last burst of effort, the rope snapped and she pulled her bloody wrists free from its bond. They hadn't made the knot hard, and after a few skillful twists of her arms the rope had broken.

Mitsumi then took the kunai and let it slide through the ropes at her feet. Finally free, she placed her lone weapon back into the pouch and walked over to the trap door.

_'Well here goes nothing,'_ she told herself before pushing against it with all her might. Whatever was on top of it must either be tremendously heavy, or it was locked tightly in place. The room was pitch black, and there was no other way she could get out of there. Suddenly, a thought occurred in her mind. Eventually, she would use up all the air in the small room, and the threat of suffocation would become her main priority.

Whimpering, Mitsumi leaned against the trap door, falling against the stairs that led up to the thick wooden barrier. Just as she sat on the top stair, she lowered her head and Sasuke's clean smell filtered slightly through the fabric of his jacket.

Clinging tightly to the last piece of hope that she had, a simple black jacket, she closed her eyes and whispered, "Help me, Sasuke…"

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A/N: Ahh, I love writing cliffies. Well this isn't much of a cliffhanger, but I'm not cruel. Or am I? Bwahaha.

Review! The more reviews I have, the faster I write!

Take care everyone!


	8. Deadly Explosion

Disclaimer   
Naruto belongs to moi!  
-wakes up-  
Crap, that was a dream…  
No, Naruto doesn't belong to me. I wish it did though… But you guys don't care. So onwards to the story!

Dedication  
Big time thankies to Jayme for helping me with my self-confidence.  
I ROCK at action writing, eh girl! ;) lol!

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**Chapter Eight: Deadly Explosion **

Sasuke woke up with the morning sun blazing through the windows of his house. Groaning, he got up tiredly and pushed back his raven hair, looking at the time. It was 9:40, and he still had twenty minutes to burn before he was to meet Mitsumi for the day's training. His night job as an ANBU had drained him of every ounce of energy he possessed, and the shinobi knew that his patience would be very short with his student today.

After a long shower and a quick breakfast, Sasuke made his way to the training grounds, then looked at his watch. It was exactly ten.

Shifting his weight from one leg to the other in irritation, he waited for Mitsumi to show up. The seconds turned into minutes, and after half an hour his irritation turned into anger.

When the clock read eleven, his anger had now evolved into rage. Growling, the shinobi stormed towards her apartment, ready to burst down her door to drag her sorry ass to the training ground. Since he'd begun to have feelings for the girl, his training sessions had been short and intense so he could spend some time with her afterwards. But for her punishment, today's lesson would be long, tedious, and painful.

--Mitsumi's P.O.V--

The girl slowly drifted away from sleep, waking up to feel a burst of fresh air descending upon her and the noise of the trap door opening. She looked up weakly at the Sound Ninja looming above her, glad to finally be able to gulp down breaths of non-stale air.

"Who are you?" the man brutally asked, glaring down at her.

The girl resisted, not wanting him to know her name. He asked her a second time, but she still didn't answer. Finally, she felt the hard impact of his heavy work boot on the side of her head, sending her back down the stairs and into her prison.

"You want to be a bitch? Fine, then suffer like one!" the man roared, slamming the trap door shut again and plunging Mitsumi back in obscurity.

_'Great,'_ she told herself with a groan as she rubbed her head and felt a warm liquid touching her fingers. _'This is not good. I have to get out of here!' _

The skin was only split, but her head started to throb like it had never done before. "For Kami's sake, Sasuke, where are you!?" she suddenly snapped, sitting up painfully as tears of helplessness and fear filled her eyes.

--Sasuke's P.O.V--

"Mitsumi!" he shouted loudly, rapping on the door with his fist. He had been shouting at her to wake up and to open the door for a minute now, and he was beginning to feel uneasy.  
_  
'Where the hell is she?'_ he asked himself, dropping to his knees. He gently ran his fingers on the carpeted floor until he found a small bump, then pulled out a kunai and made a slit in the fabric, uncovering a key. Smirking, he took the piece of metal and unlocked the door, letting himself in her apartment.

At first, Sasuke called out her name gently in case she was somehow still asleep. But no one answered, so he went forward and peeked in her bedroom. Empty. He stepped in her sleeping area, noticing absent-mindedly her pajamas lying on her bed. So she had gotten up this morning, and had gotten dressed as far as he knew.

His next stop was in the bathroom, which was also empty. But the first thing he did when he stepped in was to touch the lone towel on the rack. His face turned into a frown when he realized it was jet dry. Mitsumi hadn't slept there, or else she would've probably jumped in the shower upon getting up. It would still be slightly humid even if she would've taken her shower the night before. That all added up to the fact that she had probably not even been inside her apartment last night.

That worried him.

The powerful shinobi left her apartment and was careful to lock the door, keeping her key in his pocket. He made his way to the Academy, then looked down at the ground, trying to find her footprints. Thankfully, it hadn't rained and he could still make out the faint traces in the dust.

Sasuke followed them, and they eventually led him to a dark alley. He slipped through the alley, walking right in front of the concealed door before emerging on the other side, where he lost track of her footsteps. Swearing under his breath, he looked around himself like if there would be an evident clue to her whereabouts. Yet there were none.

- - -

Meanwhile, in a darker part of town, five Sound Ninjas, all Jounins, were crouched in a circle and talking out plans.

"I had to capture a girl, she had seen me on top of a house and could've reported us," Mitsumi's kidnapper muttered, frowning. "We trapped her in our old storage room in the alley between the two shops."

The leader nodded, and then said, "You all have explosion tags. You all know the plan. We shall see each other tonight."

With those words, all the ninjas dispersed with their designed destination in mind.

Mitsumi's kidnapper smirked; he had a plan of his own. He made his way to the building where his captive was trapped, then placed two explosion tags on the door and raced away. The Sound Ninja crouched and waited for the impact, smirking in anticipation.

-- Mitsumi's P.O.V --

"Yes!" the girl gasped as she pushed the trap door open. She had used the kunai to play around with the screws that held the trap door shut tight, and they had eventually fallen. She hiked out of the hole and let the trap door fall, but then her knees began to shake as she stood up painfully.

Mitsumi's face was bruised and the blood was now dried on the side of her face and on Sasuke's jacket. Groaning, she shrugged out of the extra useless fabric and placed it close to the door before trying to open it. Locked, of course.

There was a small, dusty window on the wall opposite from the door, and she was sure that she could pass through the opening. She found a piece of wood and threw it at the glass, shattering it. She quickly brushed away glass pieces, but then a noise at the door startled her. They were returning, she had to be quick and leave right away.

Mitsumi jumped up through the window, the remaining glass pieces catching on her bare arms and ripping small holes into her shirt. But with a final tug, she pulled herself out of the hole and crumbled down to the ground below.

Then the explosion tags went off.

--Sasuke's P.O.V--  
  
The shinobi was standing a few feet from the building when the tags exploded. He covered his face quickly as debris sputtered down from the sky. He heard similar explosions in the distance, but his attention was directed to the one close to him. He quickly went forward to examine the damage. He was calm, yet at the same time angered. His current concern was Mitsumi, not some tags blowing up abandoned shops.

_'Sound ninjas, probably,'_ he sighed in irritation as he looked at the two buildings.

But then Sasuke stopped dead in his tracks. Lying in front of him were pieces of what once was a tattered black jacket. A jacket that he recognized. The jacket that he had given to… His thoughts stopped as he looked at the two crumbled houses. His heart stopped, then began to race wildly as he took a few steps forward and shouted as loud as he could,

"Mitsumi!"

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A/N: Yay, a second cliffy! Woot!

Thank you to my fellow reviewers! I'd like to mention two in particular:

1) nine-tails8! As if I'm the first anime fic you read on I feel so special! I hope you'll like the rest of this story!

2) uchiha hikari! Thank you for posting a review in every single chapter! I appreciate it!

More reviews! I love reviews! Next chapter will be fluffier, promise. And big time angsty! Big time angst! Just 'cause we all love angsty chapters!

Take care!


	9. Six Feet Under

Disclaimer   
I may not own Naruto, but I do know how to make people hang onto cliffies! XD

Dedication  
To Alexz. Why you ask?   
Alexz will understand as she reads on. The rest of you might be confused as to why this is dedicated to her. Wait… most of you don't know Alexz. XD 

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**Chapter Nine: Six Feet Under**

_Mitsumi jumped up through the window, the remaining glass pieces catching on her bare arms and ripping small holes into her shirt. But with a final tug, she pulled herself out of the hole and crumbled down to the ground below._

Then the explosion tags went off.

Mitsumi woke up from unconsciousness after just a few minutes of being knocked out. Yet when she opened her eyes, she was greeted by a fresh wave of pain and total darkness. She vaguely remembered the explosion, the shattering of the two houses, and the large piece of wood coming right for her head. But afterwards, nothing.

Figuring that the impact of the wood with her head had knocked her out, she tried to stand up despite the blackness, but found herself pinned under a beam. It was lying horizontally over her ribs, and the weight was pressuring into her and was sending throbs of heat to her brain with every heartbeat.

So that was where the excruciating pain came from.

She raised a hand to her burning forehead, and noticed that the small wound on the side of her head had reopened and was bleeding again. _'This is just great, I'm going to die of a bleeding head hidden under a pile of wood and nails!' _she thought to herself as tears slid down her pale face.

Groaning, Mitsumi listened hard, hoping to hear something. A voice, maybe; anything to give her hope. But all she could hear was the lumber over her shifting slowly, and she gave a low moan of pain as the pressure on her ribs increased slightly.

--Sasuke's P.O.V--  
  
_…Sasuke stopped dead in his tracks. Lying in front of him were pieces of what once was a tattered black jacket. A jacket that he recognized. The jacket that he had given to… His thoughts stopped as he looked at the two crumbled houses. His heart stopped, then began to race wildly as he took a few steps forward and shouted as loud as he could,_

"Mitsumi!"

The Shinobi's voice rang through the empty street. Most people had run _away_ from the explosion rather than to go forward. Sasuke immediately threw his senses as far as he could, and he thankfully felt the slightest touch of her chakra coming from the other side of the pile of lumber. Not wasting a second, the shinobi rushed to where he felt her, then sunk to his knees and shouted out her name as hard as he could, then placed his ear down and listened intently. 

Mitsumi heard him call her, and the tears of fear now turned into tears of joy as she began to sob with relief.

"I'm down here Sasuke! Get me out of here!" she shouted as loudly as she could, yet her voice was heavy with pain.

The shinobi immediately began to pull out the pieces, and after a good fifteen minutes, he took off the heavy pillar that had crushed her down. His clothes were torn, face was dirty, hair disheveled, and he was exhausted; but his heart still faltered slightly when he saw her. 

Mitsumi's face was matted with dry blood, and the side of her head was still slightly bloody with the fresh red liquid. Bruises and cuts covered her entire body, and the strained gasps that came from her dry lips couldn't be good. But that didn't stop Sasuke from sinking to his knees beside her as she sat up weakly. He wrapped his arms possessively around her, drawing her close to his chest as she clung to him, shivering in pain.

The girl's whole body was on fire, and she felt like she was going to pass out. Weeping softly, she allowed herself to fall against his body, breathing in his scent as she realized that she was safe.

Sasuke dropped his face to her sticky hair, but he knew that this wasn't the moment to hold her in his arms. She was badly injured, and she needed to get to the hospital right away.

Getting up, the shinobi picked her up in the bridal fashion, and she suddenly dropped unconscious. Swearing under his breath, he turned on his heels and began to run towards the hospital.

- - -

After a few minutes, he burst through the lobby only to find Kakashi sitting in a chair, almost as if he had been waiting for his former student. He was talking to a 25 year old Medic-nin who had the back of her reddish-brown hair short, but her bangs long. Dark-framed glasses covered her grayish-blue eyes, and a frown immediately covered her face when she saw the bloody girl in Sasuke's arms.

Kaoru Motoko had been a Medic-nin for a few years now, and her healing skills easily surpassed anyone else's in the village. So when she ordered Sasuke to go drop Mitsumi on a bed and afterwards leave the room, the shinobi did what she told him to do wordlessly.

"Come sit down, Sasuke. Let the beautiful woman do her job," Kakashi said as he watched Motoko leave. Or rather, he watched _her body_ leave, his eyes tracing the woman's curves as she raced away.

Sasuke rolled his eyes at his old Sensei's attitude towards the woman, but he sunk down beside him anyways. He didn't say a word, his thoughts fully occupied by Mitsumi as Kakashi rambled on about the gorgeous Medic-nin he had just met. 

Minutes passed on quickly, turning into hours. When Motoko came back, brushing her brown bangs away from her eyes with a smile, it was night. Kakashi jumped up and immediately went to the woman's side, devouring her with his single uncovered eye while Sasuke looked up at her hopefully.

"She's fine. She's conscious also, if you both want to see her!" Motoko said with a grin. She hadn't even finished speaking that Sasuke was already gone, but Kakashi lingered behind to talk to her.

- - -

Mitsumi opened her eyes when she heard the commotion, but then rolled them as Sasuke shut the door behind him. "Don't rip it out," she mumbled with a lazy smirk as he looked back at the door he had nearly broken down. But then he turned back to Mitsumi. She was propped up on pillows with the covers pulled up to her chest and bandages were wrapped around her head, but at least she had stopped bleeding. Mitsumi gave him a long, loving smile, expecting him to return it.

But her teacher looked mad. He stepped forward, almost angrily, then lashed out at her, "Do you know how worried I was, Mitsumi!? Can you even begin to imagine how I felt when I found my jacket tattered like that? What in the world were you thinking, going in that damned alley, especially with the threat of Sound Ninjas looming above us! You could've been killed!" 

Mitsumi's smile left her lips as she dipped her head in shame. "I'm sorry," she whispered, her voice broken with the sudden unexpected rush of emotional pain that his anger left in her.

She felt him sitting down on the bed, and the teenage girl half expected him to harm her. But that never came. Instead, Sasuke wrapped his arms around her for a second time and drew her close to him. The smile returned to her lips as she hugged him back gently; glad to finally be back in his arms.

"Don't ever scare me like that again," he whispered gruffly, and Mitsumi could distinct a clear note of pain in his voice. He leaned down and kissed her hair as he rubbed her back, then gently pulled away and looked at her. His eyes were moist, and Mitsumi had to blink twice to make sure she wasn't dreaming. Worry was etched in his feature, and she could feel his heart racing frantically as she brushed the side of his neck with a shaking hand.

"I promise," she murmured back, then gently leaned back on his chest to eventually fall asleep in his protective embrace. 

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A/N: Aww. Cute.  
Well not that cute, but I did make Sasuke break the hard shell to let us see the sweet, caring boy inside of him. :D

…Okay I'll stop now.  
Review, and next chapter will be fluffy. I know I always say that, and I know it never happens. But this time, it will!

Take care!


	10. Under a Starry Sky

Disclaimer   
Don't own it.

Dedicated  
Once again, dedicated to Jayme! Just because we did this race thingny where we were both trying to outwrite each other. I will admit, she won. So this chapter is dedicated to her.

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**Chapter Ten: Under a Starry Sky **

The next evening came by quickly, and Sasuke had been told to walk Mitsumi back to her apartment and to make sure she wouldn't faint on the way there. Half of the moon was out, and it was lighting the houses partially, just enough to make everything white glow. The stars were also out, glistening in the sky like millions of little diamonds on a dark blanket.

"You didn't have to come along, you know," Sasuke said impatiently, throwing Kakashi an annoyed glance. His ancient teacher had insisted to accompany him, in case 'something was to go wrong'.

The silver-haired man grinned in a laid-back fashion, then said, "You never know, Sasuke! Anything could happen!"

Finally, the pair stopped at the hospital, where Mitsumi and Motoko were talking while they sat on a bench close to the hospital. Kakashi immediately stepped in the conversation and said hello while Sasuke glared at his teacher.

"Sasuke will bring Mitsumi back to her apartment!" Kakashi announced with a grin to his old student. "Meanwhile, would the other pretty lady like coming over to my place for a coffee?"

The younger shinobi rolled his eyes, thinking, _'There is no way she will fall for that old trick!' _

But surprisingly, the Medic-nin smiled and stood up, then said sweetly, "Of course I would like so, Kakashi! Why not?"

Kakashi smiled and walked over to the woman, then slid his arm around her back before pulling her along towards his house. But his hand slid down to rest on her hip, yet Motoko didn't seem to mind as they walked at a leisurely pace.

Sasuke shook his head and returned his gaze to Mitsumi. He noticed the small, clean scar close to her hairline on the left side of her face, the cuts on her arms and legs, the dark purple bruises, and her hair still matted with dry blood. Yet even with all of those imperfections, he still thought she was the most beautiful girl in the village.

Noticing Sasuke studying her, his student looked down self-consciously, hoping that the moon would go away and plunge her into darkness. But then she felt him gently taking her hand and pulling her forward.

He led her wordlessly through the streets until he reached her apartment door. Mitsumi reached in her pockets, then winced and muttered, "I must've lost my key while falling from the window…"

Sasuke smirked, then produced her other key, inserting it into the doorknob to unlock the door. The girl eyed him suspiciously, but didn't ask him how he had gotten her key. A simple look at the cut in the carpet explained everything.

He opened up the door for her and she slipped in, then was about to turn around to thank him for escorting her when he closed the door behind him. His face was straight, devoid of any emotion.

_'Fine, invite yourself in,'_ she thought to herself slightly annoyed, but once again stayed quiet. Instead, the girl walked forward and opened up some drawers, pulled out some clothing pieces, then said, "I'm going to take a shower. Make yourself comfortable; I'll hurry up!"

Sasuke nodded before watching her enter the bathroom. Soon after, the sound of running water drifted out into the bedroom. But strangely, the first thought that entered his mind was, _'She didn't lock her door…'_

Mentally slapping himself, the shinobi turned on his heels and walked out of her bedroom into a small kitchen and dining area. _'I'm starting to think like Kakashi. This isn't good,'_ he chided himself, referring to his earlier thought. Sighing, he fell on a kitchen chair and stared at the counter blankly until Mitsumi returned. He allowed his eyes to drift over her form as she walked in, drying her hair with a towel.

Clearing his throat, Sasuke had to turn his eyes away from her and had to force himself not to get up. _'For Kami's sake, why the hell am I this attracted to her?'_ he growled to himself, yet his face remained as stoic as stone. But he only was sure of one thing at the moment.

He couldn't stay alone with her right now, especially not in her apartment.

Standing up, Sasuke quickly asked her, "How about we take a stroll outside? It's a nice night, and you must be sick of staying inside all day!"

Thankfully, Mitsumi agreed and they were soon outside into the cool summer night. The silence returned between them as they walked, and after a few minutes Sasuke asked her gently, "How do you feel?"

Flattered by the fact that the proud Uchiha boy actually cared for her, she sighed and took her time to answer, "I feel alright. Much better now that Motoko gave me an antidote to stop the throbbing in my head. But I do feel dizzy most of the time, especially when I have to stand for a long period of time."

Mentally kicking himself for bringing her outside in this condition, Sasuke led her to a bench that was placed close to an oak tree. Yet the moonlight was still passing through the branches, lighting parts of the bench as they sat down on it.

"We're going to rest for a while. I don't want you passing out in the middle of the street," Sasuke said with a slight smirk forming itself on his lips.

Mitsumi returned his smile, but then it faded as she asked, "Are you going to punish me?"

Her question was answered with a surprised expression and an, "Why would I punish you, Mitsumi?"

"Well I have been careless," the teenage girl murmured shamefully, "And I let myself fall right in the trap that the two ninjas set out for me. I didn't even focus to make sure that they were from our village; I just didn't do like a real ninja should. And as a teacher, you should teach me a lesson and scold me for what I did instead of being so sweet!"

Sasuke slipped closer to her on the bench, then asked her softly, "Don't you think that you've been punished enough?" With those words, he allowed his eyes to drift to the scratch on her forehead, then down to her bruised flesh.

Mitsumi sighed, but still wasn't satisfied. She felt like she deserved a good beating for being to careless, and she murmured, "I was so stupid…"

Sick of hearing her whine, Sasuke smirked and said, "Yeah, you were."

Mitsumi glared up and him, and he took advantage of the moment to wrap his arms around her waist and to pull her close to him. Her offended state immediately turned to a more relaxed feeling as she sunk into the warmth of his embrace. Since they had returned from the hospital, he had been kind of aloof with her. But now, that was gone as she felt his cheek dropping on her head comfortably.

_'I'm the luckiest girl on Earth right now,' _Mitsumi thought to herself, but then another thought made her break into a grin. _'I wonder what Kenoyo would say if she'd see me in Sasuke's arms right now.' _It was well-known that her ancient fellow student had despised Sasuke for a reason that no one really knew.

But she snapped back to attention as she heard Sasuke gently say that he loved her. Smiling, Mitsumi returned his comment with a gentle kiss on his neck, making him pull back to give her a look of surprise. Usually he was the one who moved it first, not her.

Her turquoise eyes shone with love as she stared up in his jet black ones. In the moonlight, his eyes were like mirrors that she could stare in for hours. She met his gaze proudly; not faltering like so many would when the well-known shinobi would stare down at them.

Eventually, Sasuke took her jaw in his right hand and dropped his forehead to hers, still looking intently in those blue-green pools in which he could easily forget time. Then, as gently as he could, he tilted his head to the side and dropped his lips to hers.

Mitsumi's dizziness came back and her heartbeat quickened as she shyly kissed him back. For a minute, she completely forgot they were sitting close to the street, prone to watchful eyes. But frankly, neither really cared as they lost themselves in this blissful moment of their first kiss.

The pair pulled away from each other after a few seconds, and Sasuke made her rest in his arms. While dropping her face on his chest, she could feet his frantic heartbeats that matched her own, and Mitsumi broke into a loving smile.

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A/N: Here we go dear readers!

Oops, I had originally written "dead readers"… well that's what might happen if you if you don't review! XD Nah, just kidding! But I would love to get more than a hundred reviews on this fic too, so review away! It would make me very happy!

You guys wanted 'fluff', you got fluff! Baah, the first kiss! Always a loveable chapter!

Take care!


	11. Fight for What You Love

Disclaimer   
Don't own it. 

Dedication  
This one's for Riah. Just because she wanted a dedication.  
It's also for Bonez, because we both dislike Sakura. 

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**Chapter Eleven: Fight for What You Love**

_'I can't believe it's been two weeks today that I'm training with Sasuke!' _Mitsumi thought to herself as she stepped away from Ino's Flowershop. The blonde girl had offered her a new haircut to hide the small scratch on her forehead, and the younger girl had readily agreed.

Sasuke rolled his eyes slightly as he saw Mitsumi coming out of the shop with her brand-new haircut, but didn't make any comment. If that would boost her confidence in life, then so be it.

"Hi Sasuke! I'm ready to start training again!" Mitsumi greeted him with a grin as she stopped a few feet from him. She had been slightly gloomy since the incident, but today it had obviously lifted. Just the fact that she could train again with him had brightened her mood. 

Sasuke gave her a small, barely discernable smile before saying, "There won't be any training today. The Hokage gave me a small mission; I should be back in a few hours."

The girl's face fell slightly; she had been looking forward to training with Sasuke again now that her wounds were completely healed. But he couldn't help it; he had to do exactly what Tsunade told him to do.

"Alright. I guess I'll see you then," she answered quietly, her happiness leaving slowly. But then Sasuke pulled her into his arms, risking a quick hug even if they were surrounded by people. That brought the smile back to her face, and she waved at him happily when he let her go and began to walk away.

Mitsumi would miss him for sure, but it didn't mean that she couldn't do some training on her own. Or maybe she could find someone else to train with.

But when she turned around and came face-to-face with a pink-haired kunoichi, she knew that her plans were cancelled. And she didn't look very happy either.

"I had told you before not to get involved with Sasuke!" Sakura snapped jealously, glaring hard at Mitsumi.  
_  
'Ooh boy, this will be a long day,'_ the brown-haired girl thought to herself, rolling her eyes slightly. She then took a deep breath and answered as normally as she could, "Sasuke saved my life, Sakura. Without him I'd be dead right now. It's normal that we grew closer through that. It was just a friendly hug, he was telling me not to worry since he'll be gone all day." 

But that didn't stop the kunoichi as she glared even harder and snapped, "He only hugged you because he thought you were pathetic! He feels sorry for you, can't you see that?"

_'Is it possible to be this jealous and clingy?_' Mitsumi asked herself with a second roll of her eyes. She had absolutely no love for Sakura, and the older girl was simply irritating her with all her bickering. Half tempted to just turn around and to leave, but at the same time half tempted to stay and make Sakura even more jealous if possible, Mitsumi eventually chose the latter.

A smirk slowly grew on her face, almost as if she was mimicking Sasuke's. She felt emboldened, more confident somehow to know that a Jounin was irritated with her because of a simple hug with her crush. Also, the girl knew that she wouldn't be put down by a lousy girl like Sakura. _'If she only knew…'_

Jut to egg her on, Mitsumi answered, "I may be pathetic, but at least I got to feel his arms around me."

Sakura's mouth fell open at her answer, she couldn't believe it! Her face was now tinted a pale shade of red with anger, almost matching the color of her light pink hair. _'That weak Chuunin has a crush on my Sasuke!' _Inner Sakura screamed out, _'I'll keep harassing her until she admits it, and then I can tell the whole city and Sasuke will never talk to her again!'_

"Admit it, Mitsumi! You love him! You have the biggest crush in the world on him! That hug he gave you… I saw your face, I saw your reaction! You don't see him as a friend, and certainly not as a teacher! You see him as a future lover! Well let me tell you, you don't stand a chance!" she shouted, drawing some attention from people passing by.

The turquoise-eyed girl sighed, now growing frustrated. _'We're acting like ten year old girls bickering over a boy! I can't believe I'm still standing here!'_ she told herself, then decided to tell Sakura to just go away. "You're overreacting, Sakura. Once again. Just leave me alone, will you? I'm not going out with Sasuke and I never will! Happy?"

_'Just push her a little! She'll break!'_ Inner Sakura shouted in glee, and the Outer one listened to the nasty voice and decided that taunting her would be the best way to continue things. Sighing, she shifted her weight to one leg and crossed her arms, a dreamy smile growing on her lips. "Just imagine his black, silky hair flowing in the wind. His gorgeous eyes shining as he tells you he'll protect you until the end of times…"

Sakura kept on rambling, but Mitsumi tuned her out. She hated with Sakura turned into her fan girl self. Which was the main reason why the two girls weren't friends.

After a few minutes, though, the younger girl snapped. She had enough of Sakura, and she absolutely wanted her to leave and now.

"Okay, you know what Sakura?" she suddenly snapped, stepping forward so she'd stand closer to the girl and be able to yell directly in her face. "I do love Sasuke, and he loves me back! I love to slip in his embrace, to kiss him under the moonlight, and to generally to be his girlfriend! So **you** are the one without a chance!" 

Sakura reeled back slightly, shocked. She had expected the younger girl to admit a crush, but to actually admit that Sasuke loved her back? Could it be true?

"You… liar!" Sakura screamed, not believing her. Mitsumi's smirk returned on her face as she saw Sakura get so flustered. It felt good to be able to shove it in her face.

The pink-haired kunoichi glared at her one last time before turning on her heels and leaving quickly. The crowd of people who had gathered to watch now left since there was nothing left to see.

Mitsumi shook her head, thinking to herself that Sakura was pathetic. But she had made her jealous. A smile slipped on her lips as she turned around and left to train.

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A/N: Hi guys, I know, it's a rather short and pathetic chapter. But I had to place it in for chapter 12, so don't murder me in the reviews.

Also, I don't know why but I've bee having some problems with for some weird reason my last three chapters didn't show. All my apologies, and I sure hope that this chapter will!

Take care! 


	12. Enough is Enough!

Disclaimer   
Don't own anything. Sadly. But one day, maybe… 

Dedication   
This one's for Bonez. Because we both hate Sakura. All my apologies to Sakura lovers.   
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**Chapter Twelve: Enough is Enough!**

Sasuke slowly made his way to Konoha, feeling his muscles straining painfully. It was supposed to be a two to three days mission, but he had jogged the whole way and done everything in ten hours. A pretty good timing, since the sun had just dipped below the horizon line and the darkness was slowly invading every corner of the Hidden Leaf Village.

Finally stepping in the town, he noticed a figure walking down the street with her head low, obviously exhausted. At first he completely ignored her, but then something familiar caught his attention about her.

"Mitsumi?" he called out, and the girl stopped in her tracks. Yet she didn't turn around, so Sasuke caught up with her and put his hand on her arm as a greeting.

But Mitsumi was still irritated from the morning's incident with Sakura, and she pulled away from Sasuke and told him to leave her alone roughly, crossing her arms.

_'She wants to play it rough, I can give her attitude as well,'_ Sasuke thought to himself, and he slipped his hands in his pocket and stared at her, tilting his head. They stayed in complete silence for a few minutes, and then Mitsumi sighed and glumly murmured an apology and explained what had happened with Sakura in a neutral voice.

Sasuke listened to her the whole time, and flinched slightly when she admitted to telling Sakura about their relationship. But then he shrugged and pulled her in an embrace while murmuring, "It's alright. We won't have to hide it anymore, so we can do whatever we want when we want to. Plus the whole town would've found out eventually, so might as well be now, hm?"

His signature smirk slipped itself on his lips as he altered his eyes slightly and noticed Sakura standing a few feet away in an alley, watching them with a deathly glare. Just to anger her more, Sasuke gently leaned forward and brushed his lips teasingly on Mitsumi's. The girl grinned and also noticed Sakura standing close, so she slid her arms around Sasuke's neck and gave him a bold kiss. Seeing the pink-haired kunoichi turn away, the shinobi let his girlfriend go and took her hand, then walked her to her apartment. 

After giving her one last goodnight kiss, Sasuke left her at her doorstep and slowly walked outside. The night had gotten cooler and darker, and there was a smell of rain in the air. But the darkness didn't stop him from noticing the outline of one of his most clingy fan girls. Stopping for a second, he was tempted to ignore her. But he didn't want her to keep harassing Mitsumi. It had to stop.

The girl had her arms crossed, and she simply spat out, "This is disgusting. Plainly disgusting! She's your **student** for goodness' sake! You should be with a girl your own age, and certainly not a simply Chuunin who only passed her exams because the teachers felt bad for her!"

Sasuke immediately felt like reminding the kunoichi that Mitsumi was sixteen and that she had passed her exams without the help of anyone. But he wouldn't answer her comment; she didn't deserve it. Instead, he brutally snapped, "Go away, Sakura, and give it up! I'll never go out with a… girl like you!"

Meanwhile, Mitsumi closed the curtains of her apartment, then sunk on her bed. Why in the world was Sasuke talking with Sakura at this hour of the night? Hadn't he told her that he hated the kunoichi and that she was annoying the hell out of him? Sighing, she closed the light and shut her eyes, and sleep finally caught up with her.

But outside, the pink-haired girl wasn't giving up. She stepped forward and grabbed Sasuke's arm, then begged, "Please Sasuke! You never, ever gave me a chance and—"

Mitsumi's teacher shrugged off her arm, irritated by her persistence. Not even bothering to answer, he turned around and left her behind without the slightest regret in doing so.

- - -

The next day, Mitsumi slowly made her way to the training ground. The sky was dark and thunder rolled gently, thrilling the turquoise-eyed girl as she peeked up at the rain-filled clouds. Maybe today she'd be able to make her Lightning no Jutsu work. The weather was definitely working in her favor, so she didn't see why it wouldn't work. But something definitely changed her plans when she arrived. Sasuke wasn't there.

Yet Sakura was. 

Frowning, Mitsumi turned her back to Sakura and looked around herself, trying in vain to find Sasuke. Yet the pink-haired kunoichi stepped in front of her with a smirk playing on her face. The younger girl gave up looking for her teacher and raised her eyes to meet Sakura's.

"He might be late. He had a very busy night, I must tell you," she taunted, pushing back her hair with a smirk. "With me, of course. He said he was tired of your innocent ways, and that he wanted a **real** woman!"

Mitsumi felt her words sting slightly, but she didn't believe any of them. Smirking herself, she leaned against a post and began to whistle, mostly to annoy the older girl. Her carelessness worked since Sakura snapped, "As soon as Sasuke left your apartment, he asked me to come to his place! Begging would mostly be the word!"

That hit home. 

Mitsumi turned her eyes to Sakura as she remembered seeing Sasuke outside with Sakura, talking. _'Don't fall for that, it's a trick! She only wants to piss you off!'_ she told herself, her scrutinizing glare piercing into Sakura like if she could detect lies. But the other girl looked truthful, and she was smiling like if she had won the jackpot. Which pissed off Mitsumi even more.

"Okay, you know what, Sakura? I'm sick of you!" she screamed, even if it only made the other girl laugh. Bracing her feet and quickly doing some hand signs, she quietly muttered, "Lightning no Jutsu," while focusing her attention right on Sakura.

Lightning immediately bolted down, yet landed between the pair instead of striking the girl like she had wished it would. The sudden bolt blinded most people there momentarily, and Sakura reeled back with her face paling. She had wanted to anger the girl, not to make her want to kill her.

"Hey! Mitsumi, stop that!"

When the girl heard her name, she dropped her concentration and the thunder rolled loudly as the sky lit up again. She turned around and glared at Sasuke, wondering why he was stopping her from ridding the world of a girl like Sakura. 

His first words were directed to the pink-haired girl though, and he snapped, "Get lost! Now!"

It didn't take Sakura a half minute to leave the scene, and Sasuke turned his attention to his student. He was obviously displeased by her behavior towards the older girl, but Mitsumi lashed out at him before he could say a thing.

"How dare you stop me, Sasuke! This was between me and her, and you had no right to intervene!" she screamed, but her words didn't make a dent in his stoic glare. Yet it was during that moment that the girl remembered why she had jumped at Sakura. Her angry stature turned into a depressed one as she stared at him glumly, wondering if it was true.

A few minutes passed before Sasuke asked her what happened. Cursing her sudden weakness, she raised her eyes to his and tried to decipher is gaze, only to fail. Finally, she murmured, "Is it true you… slept with her?"

A disgusted look spread itself on the Shinobi's face, and he couldn't help himself but to shudder at the simple thought. But he understood now what had happened. Shaking his head, he stepped forward and took her hand in his, then whispered, "No, Mitsumi. You know I wouldn't do this to you!"

"But… you talked to her yesterday night…" she murmured, her eyes filling slightly. Groaning, she turned her head from his, not wanting him to see her crying over something so stupid. But he only brought his face closer to hers and whispered, "Don't worry, sweetheart. She came to see me, and I told her to leave me alone." A chuckle then left his throat as he said, "And anyways, I don't think that she'll be willing to approach you for a while after what you did today!"

The tears left Mitsumi's eyes as she looked up at him and started to laugh, then tightened her grip on his hand and said, "Come on, we've procrastinated enough! I want to train!"

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A/N: Hi guys, sorry this took a little while to get done. I have a rather big case of writer's block with this story and I don't know what to do with it anymore… which sucks bad. But I'll try to get over it, so review away! It might bring back the drive to make you guys happy!!!

Take care


	13. Three Weeks Already?

Disclaimer   
I don't own anyone in this story. Nor the places.  
  
Dedication  
To Jayme, because she helped me find the papers! Don't ask anyone, she knows that I mean...  
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**Chapter Thirteen: Three Weeks Already? **

Shutting the book she was trying to read, Mitsumi slammed it down on her dresser and turned on her side, staring towards the curtain-covered window intently. She couldn't concentrate; she kept asking herself why Sasuke had cancelled this practice again. A few days had now passed and Sakura hadn't bothered her again, so she and Sasuke could train in peace together.

But he had cancelled it today. For no apparent reason.

When asked exactly why their training session had been cancelled, he had been evasive and had vaguely answered, "Because we can't train tomorrow." And now it was racking her brain so much that she couldn't focus on a single thing, especially not reading.

But then something snapped her out of her thoughts- a soft click at the door. Then it was pushed open and closed again. The noise was soft, yet Mitsumi heard it like if it had been louder than thunder.

_'This isn't right. I had three keys to my apartment! Kenoyo left with the first one, and she's still in Suna. The second one, I lost in my accident last week. And the third one, Sasuke gave it back to me. So who the hell is in the house with me, and how did they get in?'_ she quickly reasoned, her heart racing frantically.

Meanwhile, footsteps slowly made its way to her bed, and she felt someone lying down behind her. She knew it was now futile to grab the kunai hidden under her mattress. Swearing to herself for not grabbing it before, she simply closed her eyes as she felt a man's arm slipping around her waist and drawing her close to him. A faint smell of mint drifted to her, and her heart began to race as she turned around and glared at Sasuke.

"What the hell? Where did you get a key?" she snapped at him, pushing his arm away.

The younger Uchiha smirked at her playfully. He had seen her shut her eyes quickly when he had stepped in the room, but he had wanted to give her a good scare. "Hello to you too," he said mysteriously, his smirk growing even more.

Mitsumi then broke into a smile and slid closer to him, lying her head down on his strong chest. He lazily slipped an arm around her shoulders and held her against him, then closed his eyes with a sigh of comfort.

They stayed in that position for a few minutes before she sat up and looked down at him tenderly. "So what is the occasion of this impromptu visit and this cancelled practice?"

Sasuke also sat up, then took her hand in his. "Do you know what day's today?" he asked her, but then clarified what he wanted to know. "Actually, do you know what event is happening today?"

Rolling her eyes at the guessing game, she then began to hum the 'happy birthday' song teasingly, and it was then his turn to roll his eyes in exasperation. "Very funny," he said, "No, today's been three weeks you've become my student. Congratulations on surviving!"

Mitsumi smiled, wondering what was wrong with the Uchiha boy. Usually, he wasn't a date keeper, so she was slightly suspicious as to what was going on. Yet she decided to let the probable surprise play itself out, so she shifted her position and said, "Yes, thank you, dear fans! I suffered greatly, but I did survive!"

"Want a reward for that?" Sasuke continued, smirking as she began to play his little game.

Smiling innocently, Mitsumi said, "Don't I deserve one?" This was perfect; he was falling directly in her trap. It wasn't anything too dramatic or drastic, but it would probably give him a small dose of embarrassment.

Sasuke's smirk never left his lips as he murmured gently, "Well that's great, because I have one for you!"

Half of her wanted to answer him normally and ask for the surprise, but the other part of her didn't want to end her joke right now. Silently battling out the two choices, she finally decided on the latter and said, "Listen, Sasuke, we've been together less than three weeks, I don't think we should be talking about that right now… Just wait a while longer okay, I know you're impatient but I'm just not ready to do this…"

Sasuke then gave a long moan of desperation and fell on his back while Mitsumi burst in laughter. He brought a hand up to his forehead and rubbed it, then waited for his girlfriend to stop snickering. Finally, when she had calmed herself down, he clarified, "Nothing like that, I swear!"

Mitsumi fell into another fit of laughter and allowed herself to fall on her back beside Sasuke, then turned her head and looked at him curiously. She then took his shirt and tugged it gently, urging him to go on and to tell her what her reward really was.

Sighing, Sasuke finally explained himself, "Suna needs a new Kazekage, and they already named him. Sabaku no Gaara will take the head of Suna, and they're having a ceremony in his honor. The comity that takes care of the ceremony wants someone to represent every village there, so I was wondering if you would like to come with me."

The offer was nice, thoughtful, but it made Mitsumi's smile vanish and the comfort leave her. Sitting back up, she turned her back to Sasuke and gave him her answer, "No."

Sitting up also, he arranged his body so that he could easily hold her in his arms, and when she was comfortably lying on his chest he murmured, "Listen, this is the perfect opportunity for you. You can go to Suna and show Kenoyo that you can be strong also. Plus, it'll give us some time together outside the village."

Weighting the pros and cons silently, she then realized that Sasuke was _comforting_ her. Coaxing her to go with him, something he would never do with anyone else. Smiling at that touch of affection, she smiled and silently made up her mind. Raising her eyes to his, the girl leaned over and gave him a soft kiss on the cheek.

Sasuke then let go of her and stood up, then said, "I'll sign us up! Be ready to leave tomorrow morning!"

- - -

"Break time! Please, Sasuke, I'm exhausted!"

Mitsumi crumbled to her knees under a willow tree, and her teacher groaned and sat beside her. "We've been walking for two hours," he said, rolling his eyes at her weakened state.

"Exactly!" she snapped, slightly annoyed by his lack of patience. Finally, he relented and looked up at the sunny sky while she allowed herself to fall on her back. The pair stayed quiet for a few minutes, and then she finally said, "It's weird that I'm angry at Kenoyo, in a way. I mean, if she wouldn't have left, I wouldn't have met you and gotten this trained."

Sasuke smirked and fell on his back also, then looked back at her. At first, he seemed hesitant to tell her what he had in mind, and when she met his eyes she knew that there was something he was hiding. Turning on her side, she eyed him carefully until he sighed and looked back up at the sky.

"It isn't coincidence that we're training together, Mitsumi…" he started slowly, which made the girl smirk.

"Oh please, Sasuke. What was it, fate? Destiny? You're turning like Neji!" she said, starting to laugh.

He winced slightly, but then shook his head. "I didn't mean it that way. What I mean is… why did you think they picked me to be your teacher? One of the coldest shinobi in Konoha, instead of someone who could have enough patience to train you? Why do you think that Kakashi pressured Tsunade to force me to train you?"

Mitsumi blinked a few times, deep in thought. He was right; the Hokage could've asked anyone else. But she had picked Sasuke. "Why?" she simply answered.

"Because I know how you feel. I know how it's like to be betrayed by the one you look up to. I know how it is to be jealous of that person, but denying it to yourself for years," he said slowly, then turned to look at her. "I know what it's like to want revenge."

Mitsumi didn't answer to that; she knew he was right. She wanted revenge; she wanted to show Kenoyo that she could be strong too. But then she thought of Sasuke, whose older brother had killed their entire clan. Closing her eyes, she murmured softly, "We're, in a way, the same…"

After a few more minutes, Sasuke got up and helped Mitsumi to stand also, then said, "Enough with the resting! We have to be in Suna by tomorrow!"

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A/N: Hello again, peeps! I hope you enjoyed the chapter! Geez, Sasuke loves sneaking in Mitsumi's room. And how he got in... will be for him to know and the rest of the world to find out!

Reviews! What's happening to them? I can't find them anymore! Where are they! Come on, my pretties, review! I need reviews to this story! Please!  
(Thanks to those to take time to review, though! Lol)

Take care!


	14. Unique Friendship

Disclaimer   
I know that you think I own it. But I don't.   
  
Dedication  
To paper-finding Jamie! Woot!   
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**Chapter Fourteen: Unique Friendship**

The hot Suna temperature throbbed down on Mitsumi as she lightly fanned herself with her hand. It was incredible how hot it was; even if it was nearly 10 pm, and she wondered how exactly did those people survive in this condition. In fact, most Suna shinobi who were present wore long dresses or pants with jackets.

The girl took a quick peek at Sasuke, who was watching the ceremony looking terribly bored. It was pulling to an end, and Sabaku no Gaara was shaking hands with the members of the committee who had just named him Kazekage. The whole crowd burst into applause, and Mitsumi only followed suit out of habit. But she did notice that Sasuke didn't clap, his hands staying securely in his pockets. He was slightly glaring at the Suna shinobi, and Mitsumi realized that he was probably thinking of their fight from years ago.

The announcer started to talk, but an exhausted Mitsumi shut him out and focused her attention on Gaara as he stepped off the stage and shook hands with Kankuro. Afterwards, he hugged Temari, and then focused his attention on a beautiful black-haired girl. Dropping a kiss on her lips, the crowd doubled its applause.

Mitsumi stopped clapping at the sight, and her hands fell to her side. They didn't stay that way a long time, since Sasuke gently took one in his own as the announcer stopped talking. He leaned over and whispered, "There's a party in Gaara's honor. Want to go back to the hotel instead of having to suffer through that as well?" 

Nodding silently, Mitsumi allowed herself to be tugged away by Sasuke. Away from Kenoyo, who was kissing Gaara a second time. 

They walked in silence for a while, and the shinobi noticed that his student was sulking. He knew that seeing Kenoyo had reopened a wound that she had tried to shut down, and she probably had regrets about coming along with him too. He kept on walking for a while, but then the silence begun to get to him.

She was just _too_ quiet.

He finally stopped at a bench and sat down with her. Mitsumi looked up at him, wondering silently why they weren't going back to the hotel. He simply looked at her for a few minutes, then reached over and kissed her gently. She didn't even bother kissing him back, the glum look never leaving her face.

"Hey," he whispered, gently pulling her chin up so she'd look at him. "Will you stop focusing on her?"

Mitsumi nodded gently, and Sasuke leaned over to kiss her again. This time she responded to the kiss, yet without much happiness. He snapped the intensity up a notch, and eventually she fell in his trap and kissed him back possessively. The couple went on that way for a minute or so, until a voice stopped them.

"Kind of ironic that Konoha sent _you_, Uchiha."

Freezing, Sasuke mentally cursed himself for not focusing on the pair coming instead of on Mitsumi. Slowly pulling his lips away from her, he then wrapped a protective arm over her shoulders and pulled her close to him before turning his attention to the speaker. Mitsumi closed her eyes and sunk her face in Sasuke's jacket, not ready to face _them_ yet.

The red-haired Kazekage was standing in front of him, holding Kimura Kenoyo by the hand. Mitsumi's old roommate and friend was glaring at Sasuke, almost with the same glare as Gaara's.

But Sasuke smirked and ran a hand through Mitsumi's hair protectively. It was obvious Kenoyo didn't recognize her yet. "Isn't there a party in your honor, _Kazekage-sama_?" he asked, stressing the title. 

Keeping his stoic cool, Gaara answered, "I wanted some time alone. With the girl I love."

_'This is perfect,'_ he said with a smirk. As long as he kept Gaara talking, he could easily have the upper hand. "What a coincidence. Same here," he said curtly, his look turning into a slight glare. He then leaned down and dropped a kiss in Mitsumi's hair, completely detaching himself from Gaara and Kenoyo.

Mitsumi could guess that either Kenoyo didn't realize it was her, or she did and she was ignoring her. It was probably the first though, since she was found practically making out with Uchiha Sasuke. Something that the younger girl certainly wouldn't have been found doing three weeks ago. 

But the Kazekage wasn't faltered, and he asked, "May I be introduced to the lady?"

Growing even more protective, Sasuke took her hand. Mitsumi pulled away slightly, but still didn't have the courage to look directly at Kenoyo, her hair hiding half of her face. Since his girlfriend didn't seem strong enough to talk, Sasuke bit back angrily, "Why don't you ask Kenoyo to introduce her?"

Since she couldn't see her face clearly, Kenoyo sighed impatiently and tugged on Gaara's sleeve. "Can't we leave them, Gaara? They're both obviously too stuck-up to talk to us!"

Upon hearing that, Mitsumi turned around and stood, then glared hard at Kenoyo. At first, the black-haired girl only peeked at her with slight disgust, but then her face cleared with recognition. Her mouth fell open and she blinked back in confusion. Was this really her meek, shy friend who always looked down at her feet when she walked? Who had struggled to do the simplest Jutsu? 

Once Gaara noticed Kenoyo's shocked face, he glared and took a step forward towards Mitsumi threateningly. But he stopped when Sasuke also jumped up and placed his arm around Mitsumi's shoulders.

Yet Kenoyo did something unexpected; she rushed forward and pulled Mitsumi into a long hug, grinning in happiness. Sasuke took a few steps back and let his arm drop while Gaara frowned slightly.

Mitsumi hugged her old friend back, but then the pain of betrayal slid into her stomach and she roughly brought her hands up to the other's shoulders and pushed her away angrily. 

"What's wrong with you?" Kenoyo asked, frowning and rubbing one of her shoulders tenderly. Mitsumi didn't answer, so Sasuke took a step forward and snapped, "You betrayed your village! You left her behind on her own and didn't write a single time to her. If I were you right now, I'd leave!"

But Kenoyo didn't back down with Sasuke's angry accusation, instead she crossed her arms and said, "I left for good reasons. I loved Gaara, I still do, and there was nothing I wouldn't have done to be with him. As for writing, I simply didn't have time, but it didn't mean that I wouldn't have done it!"

Sasuke took a step forward, but so did Gaara. The two boys began to glare at each other, both trying to mentally tell the other to back off. Mitsumi peeked at Sasuke's determined face and had to force back a groan. This wasn't how it was supposed to be. But then Kenoyo spoke up again.

"Are you serious? About actually dating Uchiha Sasuke, or was this a big play?"

Both Sasuke and Mitsumi turned to look angrily at Kenoyo, but the girl didn't falter because of their glares. But then a smile danced on Mitsumi's lips as she answered, "I am dating him. He's a very good boyfriend, too." Kenoyo's face turned into a slightly disgusted look and Mitsumi snapped, "When you told me who you were dating, I didn't say a word! So why are you acting this way?"

Kenoyo was quiet for a small moment, but then she said, "Boys, leave us alone. We have to talk privately."

Mitsumi turned to Sasuke and nodded, telling him that her black-haired friend was right. After a few seconds of glares towards the other's girlfriend, the two boys stepped away a few meters. Away from earshot, yet they could always see what was going on.

After looking at the other girl up and down, the Suna kunoichi said, "You changed…"

Smirking, Mitsumi shook her head slightly. She had expected that. "Thank you very much. You, on the other hand, didn't! Now why did you want to talk to me _alone_?"

Yet Kenoyo's glare didn't break as she said, "It wasn't a compliment, Mitsumi. And I wanted to talk to you alone because I know under the tough façade you put up around yourself, you didn't change. You take your strength from Sasuke, and if he's not around you'll eventually return to your old self."

Mitsumi cringed slightly; she knew that she was right. But the brown-haired girl wouldn't let herself be brought down by this. No way. "I'll never turn back to my old self. I like the way I am right now." 

But then Kenoyo changed subject once again. "Why Sasuke?"

"Why Gaara?" countered her old friend.

"Point taken," Kenoyo sighed. "Geez, this isn't supposed to be awkward like this. Come on, you're my closest friend! Who cares if we live in different places! And it isn't because our boyfriends hate each other that we have to!"

Mitsumi lowered her head slightly and nodded, but didn't answer her. _'Great, I'm beginning to weaken again,'_ she chided herself mentally.

"How did you meet the egoist bastard, anyways?" Kenoyo asked with a smirk. She had always referred to Sasuke that way.

Slowly, a smirk also lit itself on Mitsumi's lips as she said, "I'm training with him now. And we just grew closer than teacher/student. Obviously."

Kenoyo's face turned thoughtful as Mitsumi lost her smile. "What about Tadashi-Sensei? You're not training with him anymore?"

"He quit after you left. He said you were his greatest disappointment, and he didn't want to have to go through something like that again," Mitsumi admitted, and it finally clicked in Kenoyo's mind why the younger girl was so angry at her.

"I-I'm sorry…" 

"Yeah, but we're going to communicate now, right…?" 

Kenoyo grinned and nodded, and Mitsumi was able to smile. But then the Sand kunoichi was shot a question, "So… is Gaara a good kisser?"

The Kazekage's girlfriend's eyes shot back at Mitsumi, and a laugh of surprise left her throat. "Now I recognize you, Mitsumi! You're probably the only girl in the world who can ask me that after we just fought!"

Mitsumi looked at her friend with a teasing smile, and the two finally stepped forward and gave each other a long embrace and started to laugh.

- - -

"You're not serious," Sasuke mumbled under his breath, watching as the two girls gave each other a long hug.

The Kazekage also looked slightly disgusted as he muttered, "I can't believe this."

Taking a step forward, the Leaf shinobi snapped, "They were about to fight two minutes ago! What's this about! Hey, Mitsumi!"

But strangely, Gaara grabbed his arm and shook his head. "Let them be, Uchiha. She's not like you." 

With those words, the red-haired shinobi turned on his heels and began to casually walk back to his home while Sasuke turned and looked at Kenoyo and Mitsumi. _'Nope. I guess that, after all, you aren't like me Mitsumi…' _he thought, but a smile was dancing on his lips. _'You're definitely unique…'_

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A/N: Ahoy! What do you guys think? I feel loner, I don't get much reviews on this story. But I did get a huge one, thank you to the reviewer in question. You know who you are. Lol!

Take care everyone!


	15. Blazing Sun

Disclaimer   
-Sob- .   
  
Dedication  
To Bonez, because last chapter was supposed to be for her! Sorry, hun…   
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**Chapter Fifteen: Under a Blazing Sun**

"Goodbye, Kenoyo-chan! Goodbye, Kazekage-sama!" Mitsumi shouted, waving high into the air since they were about fifty feet from each other. The black-haired girl waved back while her boyfriend only regarded her coolly, and then slid his hand into his girlfriend's.

The turquoise-eyed student turned around, and burst into a jog to catch up with her teacher. He had impatiently stuck through three days in Suna for her, but he had clearly shown desire to leave. Which was why they were going back to Konoha so soon.

"You could've waited for me," she grumbled, fitting her backpack over her shoulders as she slowed her pace to match his. It was morning, yet the sun was burning hot and Mitsumi could feel the dryness already forming its way into her throat.

Sasuke smirked slightly and rolled his eyes, then said, "Well maybe I would've waited if you wouldn't have told them goodbye about ten times!"

"I didn't!" she exclaimed, but then laughed and made a pouting face. Okay, so maybe she _had_ overdone her goodbyes. Mitsumi would miss Kenoyo, that was sure, but the older kunoichi had received Tsunade's blessings. She could live wherever she wanted, and she had made her decision. Kenoyo wouldn't return to Leaf Village. 

The two walked a few hours, and finally Sasuke ordered her to rest. Mitsumi gladly sunk down under the hot sun and took the bottle he was offering her. Drowning half of it in a few swallow, she stretched her tired shoulders and brought a hand up to her strangely dry forehead. She felt the heat of the sun brushing on her face, which meant she would probably have a glorious sunburn upon her return in Konoha.

But that's when things got complicated.

Dizziness suddenly attacked her vision, making everything blurry for a while, and she shook her head to dismiss it. But her head began to spin and a thumping painfully racked her skull as her throat dried up instantly. She felt her pulse and breathing quickening in a dangerous fashion, and the teenage girl's pupils shrunk slightly.

Sasuke instantly saw there was something wrong with her, and he reached forward and grabbed her wrist, taking the bottle away from her and capping it quickly. The Jounin knew that he should be worrying about her instead of the water, but their supply was limited and something told him they'd need every drop possible. Afterwards, he leaned over and took her face in his hand, then gave her a quick shake and called out her name rather roughly. 

Mitsumi began to feel slightly nauseous, and small black dots began to form themselves in front of her eyes. It cleared slightly when Sasuke shook her face, but she began to sway dangerously. "S—Sasuke… I-I can't…" she stopped and brought a hand to her burning forehead before she felt a cloth covering her head. 

Opening her eyes to see a blatant darkness, she realized that Sasuke had covered her with his jacket. His strained voice rang out from the other side of the jacket. "I know it's hot and uncomfortable, Mitsumi, but bear with me for a while. Stay sitting up, you're probably having a small case of sun-stroke."

Mitsumi whimpered some kind of answer, and Sasuke gently rested his hand on her head. After a while, she pushed the jacket away from her flushed face and gasped out some fresh air. The immediate sun exposure made her groan and begin to sway again, but Sasuke slapped her cheek lightly to keep her from passing out.

He then reached over and took his kunai, then made a slit of about two inches from her collar down to the front of her shirt. The teacher had to struggle keep his eyes from not focusing on his task as he tugged on the shirt to loosen itself from its tight grip on her neck. ****

Opening up the water bottle, he spilled half of the remaining liquid on a small rag he found in his pack, and he began to brush her face, neck, and the top of her chest quickly with the lukewarm water. Swearing to himself silently, he took another bottle of water. Yet it was also warmed up. What Mitsumi really needed was cold water, and now. 

"Come on," he grunted, then picked her up bridal style and began to walk after slinging her pack on his shoulder. The weight of her things and his, plus his heat-stroked girlfriend all added with the boasting Suna sun made the Shinobi wonder if he could get out of the desert before something happened _to him_.

Mitsumi kept Sasuke's jacket over her head even if it was uncomfortable. Whatever would make her feel better, she'd do it. Clinging to the hot black cloth, she turned her head and rested it against Sasuke's chest, closing her eyes even if she was already submerged into darkness. But then a different kind of darkness engulfed her, and she soon found herself falling into unconsciousness.

This time, Sasuke cursed out loud when he felt her body go limp in his arms. _'I have to get her to a cooler place!'_ he mentally screamed at himself, and he broke into a jog. The shinobi knew that if he wasn't careful, he could fall victim to sun stroke himself, but he couldn't just watch her die.

He ran for what felt like hours, and he finally reached the edge of the desert sun and into a small wooden area. He could feel his muscles straining painfully and his throat drying up, but she still hadn't stirred. Stopping for a second under a tree, he pulled his jacket from her face and dropped his lips to her forehead. She was warm. Too warm.

But at least they were out of the boiling sun.

Sasuke pulled out a water bottle and one of his shirts from his backpack, and then spilled most of the bottle on the cloth. Afterwards, he went through the process of wetting her skin to cool down her temperature. But it didn't soothe her. The shinobi felt the tender skin just under her jaw on the right side of his student's face and realized that her pulse was still frantically beating. She needed medical attention, that was obvious.

But Sasuke himself felt like collapsing. He was usually in perfect physical condition, but walking for hours in the desert and then running through another few hours carrying so much weight wasn't helping his health. The Konoha nin knew that he should sit back and relax for a few minutes, but she was too important. He couldn't let her die. He had already lost most people he loved; he wouldn't let death take the only person he really cared for.

Standing up, he pulled her up into his arms and began his race again. But he only ran for about five minutes before his knees began to shake. _'Oh come on, Uchiha! You went through much worse than that! It's just a small race through the forest, there's a village nearby!_' he mentally snapped to himself, but his vision started to get cloudy. Shaking his head, the shinobi kept on going, straining himself more and more. He ran until the sky turned a darker shade and the sun slowly set.

A small village was then seen in the distance. A very small village, probably fifteen to twenty houses. Some children were playing together, but they stopped and eyed Sasuke carefully when the exhausted shinobi showed up. He should've examined the place before stopping, but he didn't. All he could think of was Mitsumi, who hadn't moved a muscle in hours.

Gasping to keep his breath, Sasuke stopped at the first house that he saw. He kicked the door three times, then waited while his legs began to tremble under him. An elderly woman opened the door, and the shinobi felt heat coming from the inside of the house. The woman had probably been cooking supper.

Great. More heat.

The woman didn't ask a single question, instead she said, "Ooh the poor sweetheart! Here, come in! I have a bedroom you can lay her in!"

Sasuke looked at the white haired lady suspiciously at the major act of kindness, but she had already turned and had led him through the house. Once in the room, he gently slid her on the thin sheets, then asked the lady for cool water he could have for Mitsumi.

"There's a well outside. Go get some for her, I'll call my husband in so he can help you!" was his answer.

Sasuke didn't waste a second, even if his legs kept on trembling. Exhaustion was really getting to him now that he knew she was somewhere safe. Now only if she could wake up.

Sasuke stopped at the well, which was strangely nearly full. Tying up his bucket with a rope, he lowered it down, filled it, then brought it back up. Upon grabbing the liquid-filled pot, he turned around and looked at the houses. Most kids had run inside, probably for supper time. He could guess that it was probably 6-7 pm, so he had probably carried Mitsumi for more than five hours. He might be strong, but even the strongest shinobi in the world needed to rest now and then. 

His chest was starting to pain him, so Mitsumi's teacher cupped his hands and dipped them in the water before bringing it to his lips. The cool water refreshed his dehydrated throat and instantly cleared his fuzzy mind.

But then he felt an immediate reaction to the drink and his hands raised themselves to hold his throbbing temples. He gave a low growl as the excruciating pain made its way into his head. But then his already weak knees buckled under him and he crumbled to the ground and a single thought made its way to him before blackness swallowed him,

_'This wasn't water…' _

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A/N: Wow, as if that just came out of the blue. This was sooo far from my original expectation of this chapter. They were supposed to merrily make their way back to Konoha, but I guess it won't happen, eh? XD

I might get some angry reviews about Sasuke being OOC, or that he wouldn't fall for a stupid thing like that, or that he isn't weak and running all day through the desert wouldn't weaken him.

Well you know what? Think ahead, I don't care! Sasuke's human, after all, and he too can get exhausted!

Review away, it'll make me happy!

Take care! 


	16. Poison

Disclaimer   
Wishful thinking…

* * *

**Chapter Sixteen: Poison **

Bloodshot turquoise eyes opened only to see darkness. The girl was in a small room, with only a bed and a side table. Her head was throbbing painfully and she felt stiff, but her only problem was that she didn't remember how she had gotten there.

Sitting up painfully, Mitsumi looked beside herself at a glass of water, which made her realize that she was thirsty like hell. She reached towards the glass and picked it up, then brought the liquid to her lips.

Just when she was about to drain the glass, she stopped and lowered it upon hearing a door close and a man talking.

"Yeah, he drank the water from the well. I was checking him through the window of my house. Took a few sips and he was down in a couple of seconds," a male said.

"What did you do with him, Isamu?" an old lady spoke up.

"Tossed him in my basement. The poison will keep him out of it for a few days. Anyways, Michiko, why the heck do you want to know all this? This isn't even close to being your business!" the man, Isamu, retorted angrily.

The old lady waited a few seconds before answering, but then she said, "I am your mother, and you should be respecting me, son. You know I wouldn't betray—"

"Oh shut up, you old crow!" Isamu yelled back, hitting his fist on something hard. "It isn't my fault that damned kid went straight to your house and dumped his little girlfriend there! I think that I'll wait till the boy dies, then I'll take care of the girl. Anyways, all she has to do is drink up that damned poison like he so gullibly did and she'll be out of the way."

Mitsumi immediately put the glass of water back on the table, her heart racing frantically. Sasuke had drunk some poisoned water and had passed out? And that water could _kill_ him? Where in the world was she, and how could they have gotten into such a mess in such a small period of time?

Just as she was about to get up to learn more about her current condition, heavy boots were heard coming closer. Figuring that the man she heard talking was coming to check up on her, she shut her eyes and pretended to still be asleep. In other conditions, she probably would've tempted something, but she knew that right now wasn't really the time. She was weaponless, weak, and there were probably some other people in the house beside Isamu and Michiko.

The teenage girl heard the door opening, and a light spilled in the room. Yet it soon got shut again, and Isamu's voice rang out from the other side. "She didn't get up yet. We're only playing it safe for now, but the real fun will begin when they'll wake up! Now, Michiko, padlock all the doors and go to bed," he ordered strictly, and then a second door opened and closed.

Mitsumi heard some soft footsteps walking around, and a click was heard at her door. Probably the lock. But eventually, everything was silent and Mitsumi was found reflecting on her current situation. So she was alone in a house with a weird woman, and her son was a jerk who poisoned Sasuke. Which meant her lover was somewhere, dying, and no one was taking care of him.

Tears filled the girl's eyes as she sat up in her bed. _'Hold on, Sasuke. I'll find a way to get to you and I'll get us out of this place. I promise,'_ she thought mentally, like if he could hear her.

- - -

Soft footsteps started to echo as Michiko got up to prepare breakfast at 5 am for her son. Mitsumi, who was drowsy from fatigue and lack of sleep, was jerked wide awake from the small noise. But she smirked slightly, silently. The night had been long, but at least she had a plan now.

The woman was old, that was obvious.

All Mitsumi had to do was somehow get out of the room and threaten Michiko. The old lady would probably spill out where Sasuke was upon seeing a kunai directed at her, and then all Mitsumi had to do was to kill her. Simple and quick.

Just as she heard the lady shuffle by, Mitsumi gave a weak cry of helplessness. _'Perfect, she fell for it,'_ she thought to herself as Michiko stepped in the room with a smile of gladness lighting up her features. Her white hair and powdery face made her look so innocent, so sweet, but the teenager knew better.

Since the older woman wasn't talking, Mitsumi stammered out, "Where's Sasuke?" Just as the words left her lips, though, she could've punched herself for being so stupid. Why in the world did she just tell the woman Sasuke's name?

But it didn't matter now, since the woman only smiled again and said, "He's gone outside, dear. He promised he'd be back soon."

_'You lying little…'_ Mitsumi thought to herself, but instead blinked in confusion and stuttered, "But… he promised he'd never leave me! No, Sasuke would never leave me behind; he'd stay by my side!"

Michiko wasn't flustered at all by Mitsumi's sudden rush of questions. Instead, she smiled even more and leaned over to brush her chocolate brown hair away from her face. "He'll be back soon, sweetheart. He had to send a message to Konoha asking them to send a medic here, since no one in this village is able to heal like the people in Leaf Village can. Stop worrying and go back to bed. Would you like some water before you go to sleep?"

The mention of water brought a shot of fear in Mitsumi's heart as the old lady forced her to sit up and took the glass in her hands to hand to her. _'No way I'm taking that thing, lady. No way,' _she thought to herself, but instead brought a hand to her forehead and groaned. "I feel dizzy," she muttered, and then started to cough. "I think I'm going to throw up…"

The lady frowned, suddenly worried, and put the glass of water back on the bedside table. She took Mitsumi's hand and pulled her up from the bed and led her out of the room, surely towards the bathroom. The turquoise-eyed girl smirked to herself as they stepped out of the room. _'She's even making it easy for me!'_

But just as Mitsumi was about to jump forward and to grab the woman, the front door opened and a tall man stepped in. He was about 6"3, heavy with muscles, and had a sneer on his tanned face. His hair was black, short, and his grey eyes looked like anything but friendly. Isamu, obviously.

He was so big, so imposing, that Mitsumi found her mind whirring with complete fright. She took a step back and her face drained from color as her knees began to tremble under her. Isamu's lips curled into a smirk at seeing her quake in front of him. But just as he did, something clicked in Mitsumi's mind.

_--Flashback-- _

_"Some shinoibi will obviously try to empower you with size or proximity," Sasuke started, looking at her intensely. "You have to always make sure to stand your ground and to back up before nothing less than a life or death situation. Don't show them your fear, it will only empower them and make you weaker."_

_--End Flashback--_

Emboldened by the words that Sasuke had told her, Mitsumi took a deep breath and raised her eyes to meet his proudly. She squared her shoulders and forced the fear away from her face. This wasn't a life or death situation, so there was no reason for her to back off from that man.

Just as she did so, Michiko gently asked her if she was alright. The younger girl nodded and simply said, "I guess that I just had a little dizziness spell. I'm fine."

It seemed to convince the woman, who pasted the same helpful smile on her face, but it didn't work on her son. Isamu glared harder at the teenager and snapped, "Go in your room. Now. I don't want you passing out in the middle of the kitchen, you should be lying down."

Mitsumi nodded, she knew that she had no chance of escaping now, so she turned her back and walked back towards her bedroom. Isamu followed her and took the glass of water, then handed it to her and ordered roughly, "Drink."

She knew that here was no way she would get out of drinking the liquid, so she brought the glass to her lips and allowed the poison to slip into her mouth. Afterwards, she leaned back on her bed and rolled away so she wouldn't face Isamu.

Smirking, the man waited a short period of time, then he hit Mitsumi's head with an open hand. She didn't react, so he turned around and left the room with a laugh, shutting the door behind him.

The second that he left, Mitsumi sat up quickly and took the glass of water, and spat the poison back into it before taking in a long gasp of air. But then she quieted down since a single noise would alert Isamu and Michiko. So far, her disguise was up. Now all that was left was to find a way to get out of there.

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A/N: Hey people! 

Okay, this chapter was much longer, but I edited out a big chunk. Sorry it the chapter looked rushed. And all my apologies for the long wait, I've had some problems with But it's all good now!

There will probably be only one more chapter, and then the epilogue. I'm not getting the story as reviewed/appreciated as I'd wished, so I'm guessing that the interest is not there.

Take care!


	17. Raging Fires

Disclaimer  
See all other sixteen chapters. Geez.

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**Chapter Seventeen: Raging Fires  
**  
Mitsumi woke up after a few hours of sleep, and then cursed at herself mentally. She was supposed to be vigilant and to wait for the first opportunity that came for her to escape, but she had fallen asleep instead. What an awesome ninja she was!

The girl quickly sat up, then waited for her senses to awaken fully. Her eyes were still blurry, and she couldn't quite make out what the noises were outside her bedroom. And there was that smell lingering in the air…

Wait a second.

Mitsumi's eyes widened as she jumped up from the bed. That definitely wasn't from tiredness. The air was thick with a smell that made her nose burn every time she took in a breath.

Smoke.

The girl reached the door and roughly pushed on it. Strangely, it had been unlocked. Either that or it had never been locked. Whatever. All that mattered right now was to find out what the source of the smoke was.

Just as the door slid open, the deep orange flames dangerously flickered as something collapsed in the kitchen. Mitsumi looked out of the bedroom and noticed the burning walls. Adrenaline rushed into her veins, making her forget everything else but her goal: getting out of the house as fast as possible.

The walls on both side of the small hall were burning, but she only rushed forward, not caring what would happen. The fire danced around her, reached for her body, but she didn't look back and ran right for the half-collapsed front door.

Thankfully, Mitsumi was able to make her way out of the house without any serious damage, yet she gasped in horror at the sight of the once peaceful village. She hadn't seen it before, but she could imagine the picture in her head: small houses, children playing, men working to build more houses…

Anything but what she saw.

Now everything was either burning or burnt already, the smoke rising up to greet the orange sky. Some bodies were lying on the ground, their skin burned to ashes. And lying just a few feet from her was a familiar face.

Michiko.

The old woman was barely recognizable, and Mitsumi had to turn her head away from the mass of burnt flesh and bones as disgust began to form itself in her stomach.

"Enjoying the pain?"

The girl whirled around and looked at Sasuke in surprise. The Uchiha boy was standing in front of Isamu, smirking victoriously. The man was down on his knees, panting for breath as he frantically tried to take off his burning clothes. Something then clicked in Mitsumi's mind. Fire. Sasuke. He was the source of all this chaos; he was the one who had slaughtered all these people.

_'Just like Itachi did, years ago…'_

But then she shook her head quickly, not wanting to believe the thought that had just crossed her mind. Sasuke wasn't like Itachi! This wasn't his village, there had to be a reason for him to burn down everything.

A laugh pulled her from her thoughts as she looked at her teacher. He was literally laughing in Isamu's face as the man hollered in pain, the fire eating away at his flesh. And a minute later, he was dead. His body slumped forward on the ground as fire continued to consume his body.

Seeing his enemy die obviously calmed Sasuke down as his face returned to its usual emotionless mask. His shirt was torn, and scratches adorned his back, but they didn't seem to be painful.

Turning his head, the shinobi noticed Mitsumi standing a few feet away from him. At first, he quietly took a few steps towards her, but then stopped at the sight of her shocked face. He looked up at the setting sun, but then returned his eyes to the girl he loved.

"They deserved it. They would've killed you," he said grudgingly, seeing the look of pure fear in her eyes. She had never seen him brutally kill like that, not even when the Sound ninjas had attacked them. The two of them could've simply run off, but he _chose_ to slaughter everyone.

"Come on, we'll get out of here," Sasuke ordered her, then turned around and started to walk. She followed him obediently, her legs moving on their own. Was she scared of him?

The night fell rather quickly, and Mitsumi found herself shivering with cold. She only had on thin clothing since last time she had been conscious, her location had been the desert. Sasuke had pulled off his tattered shirt and had thrown it away, and he was now walking a few feet in front of her quietly.

The first words he spoke once they were back in the forest were, "Want to stop for the night?"

Mitsumi made a small, approving noise and stopped. She still couldn't talk to him. The look he had on his face when he murdered Isamu had been so cruel, so cold… And now she was stuck in the forest, away from home, with nothing left except the clothing on her back. She didn't even have her headband anymore.

Sighing, Mitsumi allowed herself to fall to the ground as her teacher stopped in front of her. "Goodnight," she mumbled, only so he wouldn't talk to her. She didn't want to talk to him; she simply wanted to think about what had just happened, to clear her mind.

Sasuke slowly walked directly behind her, then sat down also. He then brought his legs down on both side of her and slipped his arms around her stomach, drawing her close to him. The simple contact brought a weak smile to her face, and she leaned back into his warm embrace.

"Sasuke?" she whispered simply, keeping her vision straight ahead.

"Hm?" the shinobi answered, his eyes closed as he leaned over and dropped his cheek on the top of her head.

The question was burning in her mind, she had to ask it. "Why did you kill them?"

He didn't answer for a few seconds, thinking the question through. Finally, he murmured back, "Because they deserved it."

Sighing, Mitsumi knew that she wouldn't get a clearer answer than that. She was sure he had a reason to do so. Smiling fully, she closed her eyes also and shifted her position to be more comfortable, and then she fell into a peaceful slumber, knowing that Sasuke would protect her during the night.

* * *

A/N: Wow, I wrote that in two hours!  
This is technically the last chapter, but there will be a short epilogue. Maybe I'll write it down this afternoon if I have time. I'm having a snow day here. XD This is crazy, we're in mid April! 

Review away! Thank you to those who do!

Take care


	18. Epilogue

Disclaimer  
For the last time in this story: no, I do not own Naruto.

* * *

**Epilogue**

"Finally back home," Mitsumi murmured happily, stopping in front of her apartment with Sasuke. The shinobi smirked and wrapped his arms around her, then said gently, "Too bad, I was enjoying the time alone with you."

Mitsumi laughed softly, then pulled away from him and headed towards her room. The trip hadn't been too long from the forest to Konoha, but Sasuke had still refused to tell her why he had killed everyone in the village. _'Too bad, I guess I'll never know,'_ she thought, waving at the shinobi goodbye as he turned around and left to get changed himself.

Her apartment was cool, welcoming, but Mitsumi didn't intend on staying there long. She only took the time to grab a quick shower, and then she headed back outside. The sun greeted her and she smiled in happiness as she made her way down the streets towards Sasuke's house. The trials were finally over, and she now could start relaxing again. Well, until Sasuke's next training session.

"Hey! Mitsumi, wait a second!" a voice rang out from the hospital's doorstep.

The brown-haired girl stopped and looked to her side, then rolled her eyes. Kakashi was hugging Motoko goodbye, then murmured something that made the woman start to laugh and nod. Finally, he left her behind and walked towards Mitsumi.

"Wow, did I actually see you without your Ichy Ichy Paradise, Kakashi? And with the same lady as last time? You and that medic-nin should get surgically attached," she teased, smiling happily at seeing her older friend.

Kakashi ignored the joke and pulled out a headband from one of the pouches in his Jounin jacket, then handed it to her. Surprised, Mitsumi opened her mouth to speak but he cut her off and said, "Sasuke told me about it, I'm glad you made it alive. I also heard you two are in a relationship, congratulations!"

Mitsumi's face took on an even happier tone as she tilted her head and tied the headband around her neck. "Thank you, Kakashi," she simply answered, unsure of what to say.

But then the Jounin tilted his head in thought, as if he had something to tell her. Finally, he spoke up and said, "Since you both are together now, I was wondering if you'd like to stop training with Sasuke. Your status will probably make your training lessons suffer, you should get a new teacher."

Mitsumi was slightly taken back by the question. It was true that she probably would have problems focusing on her training now, but she and Sasuke had done it before. Couldn't they do it again? Yet things had definitely changed since before the trip to Suna, and she had to throw that into the equation.

It took her a few minutes to make up her mind, and Kakashi patiently waited for her to come up with a clear decision. "Yeah, I think it would be best if we'd stop training together. But I certainly won't stop hanging around him, that's for sure!" she said, trying not to look unhappy at her resignation.

Her answer made Kakashi laugh, his uncovered eye shining mischievously. Mitsumi caught the mysterious look in his eye and narrowed hers, then asked, "What's going on? Why are you looking at me like that?"

Kakashi then stretched, almost lazily, and said, "Well I guess there's no reason for me to hide it now. **I **requested that you'd be trained by Sasuke. Tsunade refused bluntly, but I begged her to reconsider. It took a lot of time and a few bottles of Sake, but finally she accepted."

Mitsumi blinked, remembering the time when she had begged Kakashi to let her train with someone else. But he coaxed the Hokage to do otherwise? "But… why?" she asked him, blinking in curiosity.

Kakashi shrugged, then turned around and started to walk away. Once he was a few feet away from her, he turned around and called out, "Because I knew you two would get hitched together."

Rolling her eyes once again, Mitsumi broke into a smile and waved goodbye to the Jounin. She didn't know whether it was true or not, but it didn't really matter to her. The girl started to walk again, but then someone behind her cleared its throat.

She stopped in her tracks, wincing slightly as Sasuke's voice rang out teasingly from behind her. "So I guess I'm not that good of a teacher, hm?"

"Nope," she teased right back, starting to walk again. He easily caught up and she slid her hand into his as they walked together. "I just thought it would be easier for us to stay together this way instead of training," she explained quietly.

Sasuke smirked slightly; she was still trying to justify her acts no matter how hard he tried to make her stop. "I'm glad you decided to stop. I hated being a teacher anyways," he answered.

Mitsumi laughed as she remembered their first session together. She then allowed her mind to drift as they quietly walked together.

_'I'm so thankful I met you, Sasuke… I don't know what our future will be like, but for now I guess I'll be content with spending my time with you. We'll take it a day at a time,'_ she thought to herself, but then she stopped and tugged on his sleeve. The shinobi looked down at her curiously, and she asked the same famous question.

"What happened in the village?"

Sighing, Sasuke looked up at the sky for a while. He seemed to be thinking deeply, but Mitsumi didn't want to rush him. Finally, he returned his eyes to her and said slowly, "I thought you were dead."

Realization slipped in the girl's mind as she nodded slowly. So he had slaughtered an entire village thinking they had killed her. He had done that for her, out of anger and sorrow.

Because he loved her.

Smiling, Mitsumi leaned over to kiss him. He gladly met her halfway and kissed her back tenderly, loving the taste of her warm lips against his. She then wrapped her arms around his neck as her mind began to float again. _'Thank you, Sasuke. For everything. I know I'll be fine, as long as you're by my side, as long as that fire's still burning in your eyes. _

_The fire of love.'_

**The End**


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